


Crush

by 09cityskylights



Category: Shameless (US), gallavich - Fandom
Genre: Alternate Universe, Because that's what they deserve, Crush at First Sight, Dates, Flirting, Happy Ian, Happy Mickey, M/M, Mickey Uses His Words, Out of the Closet Ian Gallagher, Out of the Closet Mickey Milkovich, POV Mickey Milkovich, Shy, Slow Burn, fluffy and light
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-07
Updated: 2017-12-21
Packaged: 2019-01-10 07:36:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 68,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12294408
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/09cityskylights/pseuds/09cityskylights
Summary: Mickey is looking to get over a crappy breakup, and after some possibly questionable advice from his carefree sister, decides joining a cheap gym and bulking up some more couldn’t hurt.Maybe he’ll check out some dudes at his new gym, or maybe his ex will just happen to see him looking damn good.Or maybe he’ll meet a cute redheaded employee at a body building supplements store before he even gets to the gym....*Aka my fluffy reading week fic*





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> *Disclaimer, I know shit all about working out or the gym, so any of the products or names of equipment used are purely from quick google searches. I apologize to any possible bodybuilding Gallavich fans :D

“You should join a gym”.

Mickey looks up from the half-empty bowl of Lucky Charms in front of himself that he has been pushing around dully with a spoon for the last fifteen minutes.

His sister clearly thinks he’s not eating because he’s depressed, but that’s not it at all. The colorful little marshmallows are all gone, and the actual cereal itself tastes like crap.

“The fuck would I do that for?” he asks incredulously, finally giving up on his soggy bowl of breakfast cereal and dumping it into the sink, “I got weights here”.

“Yeah, but there’s no guys _here_. Best way to get over a guy is to get _underneath_ another one, am I right?” She grins at him, her silver nose ring glinting as she makes some sort of dirty expression that makes Mickey grimace awkwardly, “Fuck off with that shit, I don’t need to get over anything”.

She shrugs, clearly not believing him. “It also doesn’t hurt to get hotter if you want to make your ex regret dumping you. I make myself lose five pounds every time a guy dumps me and they always hit me up within a week”.

Mickey frowns. He’s not exactly a huge fan of his sister’s man-drawing tactics in general, bitch is like a Venus fly trap, but she does have a point. Not that he needs to get _over_ Max, but would he absolutely _hate_ walking past him and making his ex’s stupid chiseled jaw drop?

No. No he would not.

And Max was a fucking idiot anyways. Their ‘relationship’ had been testy, off and on, for a solid six months, the longest Mickey had ever fucked with anyone. And not because they were particularly good together, but really just from pure convenience. The tanned Australian lived in Mickey’s apartment complex, which he promptly stopped staying at a week and a half ago, when Max dumped his sulking ass.

He still flushes red at the memory. Showed up like some fucking asshole with a six pack of Busch and a ripped DVD and Max didn’t even let him in the fucking door, just put a hand out to block him from coming in and said like he was _so_ damn sorry, “Oh…Mickey, mate. That’s not why I invited you over. I’m actually really sorry, but-“

Mickey didn’t let him finish. He didn’t need to. The awkward head scratch, the guilty fucking frown… it said it all.

Mickey simply flipped him off, walked off to calmly wait by the elevators while Max watched him like some dumb goldfish with his mouth open, and then rode back up to his own floor to finish the beers on his own.

Of course he punched a hole in his wall when he got upstairs, but that was more out of fucking embarrassment than heartbreak.

So here are the benefits of going to the gym. He’ll probably get a better workout routine using more types of equipment, because all he’s got is hand weights, pullups and pushups in his current rep. He’s pretty sure that new gym over on Carlisle Street only charges like fifteen bucks a month, which is chump change. And he’ll probably get to subtly check out guys that are into working out and shit, like him.

Not the world’s worst idea.

“I’ll think about it” he finally says, leaving the kitchen to go loaf in his old bedroom for a while. He’s bored though, sitting there smoking Marlboro after Marlboro, and he ‘accidently’ breaks the cardinal rule of not checking your ex’s Facebook.

He raises a dark eyebrow sharply as what he finds lurking on the Australian motherfucker’s public profile, “Wow. Fucking prick”.

Max finally put that he’s ‘in a relationship’ on Facebook, and its sure as hell not with him. No, its some other dark-haired motherfucker.  

Not that Mickey would have done that himself, but that’s besides the point.

How the fuck did he meet someone to start an actual relationship with in less than two fucking weeks, and then take a bunch of cheesy ass pictures with?

Right.

He probably didn’t.

Mickey grits his teeth, fucking great. Now he’s got to add a trip to the clinic to his list of things to do. Might as well get that out of the way now. He grabs the keys to his shitty Toyota Echo and heads outside without a word to his sister, shifting his shoulders in the warm spring sunshine as it hits his skin.

At least its nice out, he thinks grumpily. The Southside Clinic isn’t more than a ten-minute drive, but the wait for walk ins is closer to twenty. Finally, just when he’s thinking about leaving, a middle-aged Indian doctor comes out to beckon him into a private room in the back.

“Hello Mr... Milkovich? My name is Dr. Kapoor, how can I help you today?” he asks, peering out at him from over his hastily filled out clipboard.

Mickey waves his tattooed hand at him casually, “Uh, like it says on that chart or whatever. Do your STD check”.

“Do you think you contracted an STD?”

“No” Mickey says firmly, “But my fucking ex cheated on me, so best I figure out now right?”

The doctor nods, “Yes, it is. Okay, if you can just pull down your pants sir, I’ll take a swab”. Mickey grimaces at the doctor’s intruding hands, reminding himself every half-second to ignore his instinct to shove him the fuck off.

“That it?” he asks afterwards, wondering how this shit actually works. He’d never been in any sort of ongoing hookup before, so the not using condom thing was exclusive to Max. “What if…like, fuck. What if…”

“What are you trying to say sir? Please don’t be embarrassed, its normal to ask questions”.

“What if its like in my ass or whatever? Can that happen?” he forces himself to ask, bold-faced.

The doctor frowns, realization dawning over his face. “STD’s? Yes… would like you be checked there as well?”

Mickey reddens, “No I wouldn’t fucking like to be checked there, but I’m guessing I should”.

Another dry fucking cotton swab later, and he’s sauntering out of the clinic like he didn’t just feel extremely violated from a swab being shoved up his ass, but he’s also carrying a sense of responsibility, and a promise he’ll get a call within a week with the results.

The moment he gets back inside his Echo, he sits there and turns the key, but before he even pulls out of the lot, he punches the steering wheel in frustration. It’s not even so much about feeling like he’s alone again, because he is, but he was alone before Max and he did fine.

Its feeling like he was treated like a fucking moron, just plain not existing while Max went out and fucked whoever, while Mickey thought they had a clear and frankly fucking decent arrangement. This is exactly why he didn’t believe in fucking relationships, he reminds himself. They are absolute bullshit. He shouldn't have had to take any damn test at all. 

He’s paused at a stoplight on the way to the Carlisle Street gym, biting his nails absentmindedly, when he glances over and sees a Crush Bodybuilding Health & Supplements store. He debates with himself until the light turns green and then ends up switching lanes to park outside the store.

Might as well stock up on some protein and shit while he’s at it, really commit to this thing.

He pushes the front door open, ignoring the chime of the stupid little bell and finds its larger than he had expected it to be inside. There’s a small refrigerated section in the back of the store, and a decent section dedicated to gym wear and shit too, along with the various aisles of supplements, diet aids, and everything else he figures falls within the lines of ‘health and supplements’.

Everything is in dark tones, casual and cool, and he finds its not so bad inside the store as he browses along what he thinks is the aisle of protein powders, frowning at the scientific sounding names boasted on each label. _Glutamine, casein, whey_ … what the fuck is that shit?

“Hey man, can I help you find anything?”

“Yeah” Mickey mutters without looking up, “Can you tell me where the fuck you just keep normal ass protein? Not trying to do a science experiment here”.

The employee laughs, a really hearty one, and Mickey looks up, almost doing a double take as he notices how fucking attractive the dude is. He’s got a lazy grin on his face, tipping his head to the next aisle casually, and Mickey follows the back of the red head like his heart didn’t just fall into his ass.

It would make sense if his heart was located there, he muses absentmindedly, sure as hell where his pleasure center is.

“Proteins are all in this section. What exactly are you looking for?” the employee asks, making direct eye contact with a tongue-tied Mickey. Which by the way, he had never been before in his entire life.

He pulls his eyes away from the captivating green ones across from him, “Just want to bulk up”. “Oh, well in that case we can keep it simple. You are already looking pretty good man”. Mickey tries not to blush at the compliment but he’s pretty sure he fucking fails, “Uh…”

“Eat a lot of spinach?” the guy laughs.

Now Mickey manages to frown without much effort, collecting himself as he quickly asks, “The fuck?”

“You know, like Popeye. It’s a joke” the guy grins, his ginger eyebrows raising, “You’re in good shape”.

“Yeah I work out” Mickey says dumbly, wishing he could kick himself. Clearly, if he already has some muscle and he’s here, he works out. But the employee doesn’t seem to think its dumb, and simply grabs him a can of protein powder, “Go with this one. Mass ultra, its mixed with some really awesome vitamins”.

Mickey takes the can, and finally notices the guys shirt. It’s got some cartoon rooster with its chest puffed out on it, and the words ‘PROUD COCK’ printed out in big white letters against the black tees background.

“What the…”

The redhead follows his eyes down and laughs again, a sound Mickey finds causes a strange tingle to rise over his neck. A nice one.

“Like my shirt? We sell that mass builder here too if you’re interested”.

“If you’re promoting it, why the fuck didn’t you show it to me first?” Mickey asks, gesturing at the shirt in confusion. Clearly, he has a misunderstanding on how sales work, his own job is mostly limited to cleaning and minor repairs at the hospital, maybe because he’s not the best with people.

“Okay, let me try again” the guy clears his throat, and comically turns away from Mickey before turning back around again with his hand outstretched for a shake, “Hi! I’m Ian. Want to see my Proud Cock?”

Mickey definitely loses the fight with his blush now, ignoring the hand as he starts to get flustered. “Jesus, alright, alright. I get it. I’ll uh, take this one”.

“Great, can I help you find anything else?”

“Nah…I’m good” Mickey says reluctantly, following the redhead back to the counter where he rings him out cheerfully. Why didn’t he think of anything else to stall him with?

He taps his card on the debit machine and waits. “Alright, here’s your receipt. Hope we met all your needs at Crush today, have a good one” Ian says with a smile, handing him the paper a few minutes later.

Mickey almost snorts, not really thinking as he mutters to himself, “Not all of em”.

“Huh?” Ian leans in, trying to get him to repeat what apparently, he honestly didn’t hear.

“Nothing” Mickey blurts, hurrying out of the fucking store.

What the fuck was wrong with him today?


	2. Chapter 2

It seems like no matter what Mickey does over the next two days, his mind manages to drift back to both Max and Ian.

And that’s the strange thing, because whenever his stupid ex pops into his head without permission, causing a bitter and angry feeling to rise in Mickey’s gut, its almost just as quickly smothered by a thought of Ian that somehow manages to sneak in there too.

And the Ian feeling is a little harder to describe.

It feels kind of like it does when you blush. A little embarrassing, but also sort of warm…

Its got Mickey thinking he’s a little fucked in the head right now, because he sees attractive men all the damn time, and he forgets about them as soon as they’re out of sight. Before Max, he literally relied purely on hookups to get off. Attraction was fleeting, in the moment, and then it was gone. 

So what’s so special about the goddamn redhead? Mickey considers this, grunting as he pushes upwards on the bar again, comfortably lifting 150 pounds on the bench press. He’d gone and signed up at the cheap Carlisle street gym later that same day after he had seen Ian, but two days in… so far so good he supposes. He’s still settling into the whole public gym thing, and getting used to using actual equipment. 

It keeps his muscles busy at least. Even if his brain doesn’t want to shut off.

He finishes his last round of reps, sweaty and flushed red in the cheeks, and tosses a small white towel over his shoulder, heading casually for the change room.

It can be a little hard sometimes, literally, to be in a changeroom filled with sweaty, mostly in good shape men, so Mickey keeps his eyes carefully lowered, wiping his own sweaty skin down with a gym towel but opting out of the rather public shower.

He’s got to go back to Crush Bodybuilding Health or whatever. Figure out what it is about that guy that’s making his head spin.

By the time he drives there, he realizes it was really fucking dumb to skip the shower, but whatever, he’s already fucking here. He runs a hand through his dark hair to smooth it down before giving himself a quick and subtle sniff.

He smells sweaty for sure, but not like B.O, so he figures that’s fine. He pushes the door to the supplement store open a little more confidently this time, and carefully avoids looking towards the cash register at first.

“Yo, Popeye!”

Mickey’s back is to the guy, but he quickly wipes the grin that immediately forms on his face at the sound of his voice. Apparently, Ian already has a nickname for him.

“Hey man”. He turns around and eyes the attractive redhead, who’s wearing a different t-shirt this time that simply says “Crush” on it. Mickey stares blankly at it.

“What brings you back so soon? Was the protein powder alright?” Ian asks, looking mildly concerned for a moment.

Shit, Mickey forgot he bought a month’s supply like two days ago.

“What? Oh, yeah. I just need… like bars or something. Snacks for in between workouts” he quickly lies.

Although, that's not really a bad idea he considers, eyes skimming hungrily over the rows of bars and low fat high protein cookies Ian directs him to. Anything with chocolate sounds good to him, especially if its not going to hurt his progress.

“Do you like bananas?” Ian asks out of nowhere, blinking innocently at him. Mickey’s face still scrunches a bit in amusement, he can’t fucking help himself, first Proud Cock and now this.

“Uh, yeah? In pancakes mostly”.

“Shit, I love banana pancakes. This bar is like banana bread flavored, but its really fucking good” Ian says, tapping his choice. Mickey grabs a handful of them, unsure of what to do next.

“Don’t you want to get a few different flavors, see what you like best?” the cheerful redhead suggests.

“Oh, right” Mickey reddens slightly, grabbing a couple other flavors at random. Ian finally smiles at him expectantly, “Do you want anything else?”

Mickey wonders how fucking smoothly he could play it off if he just winked and said, “You”. Pulled him right in, like it was some porno. Or some cheesy rom-com like the ones Mandy watches all the time.

Of course, he doesn’t even know if the fucking guy is gay yet. Is Ian gay? Why did he assume he was gay?

Mickey stares at the redhead, cocking his head just slightly as he considers him. Probably gay. But he’s not sure. His sister Mandy always says she has ‘gaydar’ but…

That’s it!

“Nope I’m all good, ring me up man”.

Mickey waits what he feels is an appropriate length of time (two more days) before he drags his sister Mandy out to the Crush store with him, the latter bitching and moaning the entire time about why on earth she needed to come along, until he finally sighs.

“Listen, I brought you here because I need you to do me a fucking favor” he admits reluctantly. 

She looks curious. Its rare that he asks her for shit. And for a damn good reason too, because whenever he does she thinks he owes her ten favors to one.

“What kind of favor?” she asks suspiciously.

“Nothing big. Just…you know how you said you have like, gaydar or whatever?”

She smirks, her mauve glossed lips looking very sly as she asks, “You want me to figure out if someone’s gay for you?”

“Yes. And get that fucking look off your face. Don’t be weird about it. Just come in and see what you think. The redhead, if he’s in. Name’s Ian”.

“Ooh, Ian. You like the guys with the three letter names, huh Mick?” she teases.

“Yeah all fucking two of them. Go, get the fuck out of my car”.

Mandy practically skips into the supplement shop, and sure enough, Ian is working, and he looks surprised to see the skinny brunette entering the store until he sees Mickey sauntering in after her.

“Oh. Popeye. And… Olive Oyl?” There’s a strong hint of questioning in the employee’s tone that Mickey doesn’t quite get. And he doesn’t get the reference either. The fuck does olive oil have to do with anything?

He frowns, “What?”

But his sister apparently catches on, because she just laughs flirtatiously, “Oh, no, don’t worry. I’m his sister, not his girlfriend”.

For fuck’s sake.

Ian just looks confused, ao Mickey quickly clears his throat, “So um, I liked the banana ones. And the chocolate chip. Just gonna get some more”.

Ian nods eagerly, “Yeah, go for it man”. Mickey heads off towards the snack aisle at the back of the shop, leaving Mandy to do her ‘scientific’ analysis of the redhead. He wastes as much time as he can, but after a while it seems like the two have run out of things to say, so he brings up another handful of bars to the register.

While he’s punching in his debit code, Mandy opens her mouth again, “So, do you go to the gym Ian?”

He smiles, “Yeah, I do”.

“I can tell. What gym? My brother here is looking for a new one, too many dumbasses at the one he’s going to now”.

Smooth. Mickey looks over at his sister, slightly impressed. Maybe he does owe her a fucking favor.

Ian smiles a little bigger, looking more interested in the conversation now, “Oh yeah? You’ll get that at most gyms I guess but I go to T Nation. It’s only twenty a month, but its never super busy, and you can always get the equipment you want”.

Mickey nods, “That sounds…uh, good”.

Awkward moment of silence.

“Where exactly is that Ian? He’s got a car, but no GPS. It’s kind of a piece of shit”.

Holy fuck he owes his sister today.

“It’s down past Boschesi. I could take you there sometime if you want… show you around”.

Holy fuck holy fuck holy fuck. Stay calm, Mickey reminds himself.

“Yeah sure whatever” he says dismissively, maybe too dismissively, because he can swear Ian’s face falls a bit, and Mandy steps on his foot, hard but subtle.  

Fix it, dumbass! “Should I get your number? To text you when to meet?” he asks as carefully as he can, even though his heart feels like its trying to beat its way into his throat.

There’s that damn sunshine of a smile again, the one that almost immediately makes his mind go blank as the redhead gives him his phone number, “Yeah, that’s a good idea. 708…842…9909”.

Mickey types it all in carefully, “Cool. Thanks, see you around”.

“See you around” Ian repeats, and Mickey walks super fucking calmly out of the store with his wingman of a sister he never knew he had. And as soon as they slam shut the Echo’s banged up doors, he turns to her, “So? Is he fucking gay?”

“He’s fucking gay” she confirms, nodding her head very seriously.

“Shit, how did you know?” he demands, because he honestly couldn’t fucking tell. Ian just seemed like a friendly guy, so maybe that’s all it was?

“He checked your ass out when you went to get your protein bars. Barely dragged his eyes away _and_ I had to repeat what I was saying to him. Twice. So not only is he gay, he thinks you’re hot”.

Mickey doesn’t say anything, feeling like he is bordering too damn close on sounding like a teenaged girl with a crush fucking gossiping to her bestie. But whatever, bringing Mandy to Crush got him the information that Ian was gay, he was into him, _and_  he got his fucking number.

“You owe me” she states firmly, and Mickey doesn’t even argue, just nods his head.

“I fucking owe you”.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> happy thanksgiving fellow canadians <3

He waits an entire day and a half before he texts Ian. Mandy says he should probably wait longer but fuck it, he’s not really into playing those stupid mind games everybody seems to be so big on nowadays. A day and a half is long enough to make him not seem desperate (because he does actually give a shit about that) but not long enough for him to actually  _become_ desperate.

 _Sent:_  Sup

Is that too casual, Mickey wonders for a moment, absentmindedly rubbing the mouth of his beer bottle against his bottom lip.

Oh well, too fucking late now he figures. It’s already sent. His phone then starts to ring and he’s startled at first, wondering why the fuck Ian would call him instead of just texting back like a normal person, but its not Ian’s number flashing across his screen.

“Hello?” he asks uncertainly as he accepts the call.

“Hi Mr. Milkovich. This is the South Side Walk-In clinic calling, we just wanted to let you know that your results came in today. You tested negative for all STD’s in our panel screen”.

“Oh shit, that’s good” he says in relief. He had honestly almost completely forgotten about that awkward as hell test last week. But maybe that’s because Max, and his ex’s fucked-up sense of what a relationship was, was drifting further and further from his mind.

The doctor agrees with him over the phone, “Yes, it is good news. Of course, we like to remind our patients to always use condoms and practice having-“

Mickey hangs up the phone. Thank fucking God for that.

And now he waits for something he’s a little more impatient for, a response from the hot fucking redhead that works at Crush.

His phone pings a few minutes later, and he opens the text a little more eagerly than he’d like, so regardless of the fact that he’s alone and nobody actually saw, he makes himself take another slow drink of beer before he actually reads it.

 _Received:_  Hey, is this blushing guy? Lol.

 _Blushing guy?_ What the fuck _,_ Mickey thinks, so that’s exactly what he sends.

 _Sent_ : What the fuck?

 _Received:_  I’m guessing this is the black-haired guy I met at work? You came in with your sister last time, had fuck something tattooed on your hands. You blush a lot lol.

Mickey blushes furiously even as he hammers in his response, treating his phone’s touch buttons like they’re part of a game of whack-a-mole.

 _Sent_ : No I fucking don’t.

 _Received_ : Oh…kay. You gonna tell me your real name then?

Mickey pauses. Should he make him work for it? Nah, that’s probably too much. But maybe he could play around with him a bit.

 _Sent:_ Popeye’s fine.

He had actually googled a short clip of the show the other day, wondering what exactly Ian meant by calling him that. Turns out Popeye was some 1950's cartoon character, short and muscly, but one hell of a fighter. He was always smoking a pipe too.

Close enough. 

 _Sent_ : Jk, its Mickey. Not after the fucking mouse. It’s short for Mikhailo.

 _Received:_  Oh, cool :) So…what are you up to today? I was thinking of hitting up the gym later, you should come?

Oh, thank God. That was easier than he had expected, but he still has to act casual.

 _Sent_ : Yeah sounds good. Want me to pick you up? You at work today?

It takes a few minutes for him to get his answer, and he’s trying not to frown as he waits impatiently. Finally, his phone pings again, and the message floods him with a stupid sense of relief.

 _Received_ : Yeah, I’m done at eight! See you then.

Shit, that still leaves like three hours to kill... Mickey slowly finishes draining his beer, determined not to spend the entire damn time pacing around his room like some idiot before a first date. It’s not a first date, it’s just checking out some gym with the guy, he reminds himself.

“It’s a first date”.

“Mandy, shut up”.

He’s sitting in the dimly lit Milkovich kitchen with his sister a couple hours later, finishing up a chicken stir-fry he made them for dinner while a light rain patters against the windowpanes.

“I’m just saying, you made plans to hang out, so I think it counts” she says indignantly, stabbing at a chunk of yellow onion on her plate.

“Well I don’t. Aren’t you supposed to like, actually agree that it’s a date?” he asks, wondering more and more why he was relying on Mandy’s knowledge for this shit. And why did he care so much anyways?

With Max, it was never really like that. He just sort of… went along with things as they happened, right up until the breakup.

But with Ian, he actually felt somewhat flustered, and maybe even a little nervous. He actually gave a shit, which was a little alarming for a Milkovich.

“Put it this way, if you end up with your hands down each other’s pants, it’s a date” she smirks, waving him out of the kitchen and on his way before he stands there feeling torn between telling her to fuck off and agreeing.

Mickey drives to the supplement shop a short while later and waits in his car, with the windshield wipers still going to clear his view after sending a quick text to Ian to let him know he’s outside.

 _Sent:_  In the black Echo.

About five minutes later, the tall redhead comes outside, fiddling with the store's lock for a solid minute and a half and then testing it again before he turns to Mickey’s car and smiles, jogging the few feet over and yanking the door open. He slides himself into the car like its no big deal that he’s there, but to Mickey it feels like a very big deal, and then Ian shakes his wet hair slightly, causing some tiny flecks of rain to pepper Mickey’s arm.

He shivers at the tingling sensation but tries to play it off cool, “Hey man”.

“Hey” Ian glances around the shitty car, and for the first time since he bought it Mickey feels a little self conscious. His car was reliable… even if it wasn’t the classiest or nicest thing on the block, and frankly anything nicer would probably just get jacked in the South Side anyways, but he doesn’t want to seem like a loser either.

Ian’s eyes finally land on the Ed Hardy air freshener dangling on the mirror, and he smiles. “Nice car”.

Not a single ounce of sarcasm in his voice. He probably doesn’t have his own car Mickey finally realizes, or he wouldn’t have accepted the ride and left his own in the lot here.

“Thanks” he says awkwardly, “So you uh, wanna tell me where we’re going?”

Ian laughs, “Oh yeah. Sorry, I’m a little fucking slow today. Keep on Main Street for a while, and then I’ll tell you when to turn”.

Mickey follows his directions, squinting a bit through the gray drizzle as they drive over to Ian’s gym on Boschesi, talking lightly about Ian’s day at work. Turns out he was the assistant manager, which explained why he was there so often, and he wants to eventually become the manager.

“Here we are” Ian finally says, extending a long finger out to point out the T Nation building. Mickey swallows hard, pulling into the large parking lot and following Ian casually out of his Echo and towards the upbeat cherry red and charcoal grey building with a big metal T over it. 

“So I’ve been coming here for about a year” Ian says casually as they head inside, waving Mickey over to follow him into the changerooms. Mickey came prepared in his athletic gear, but of course Ian didn’t, having been at work for most of the day.

“There’s showers down that hall there, private ones, so that’s awesome. Better water pressure than I get at home to be honest” Ian laughs, and then without warning, he plunks his gym bag down on a bench by the lockers and pulls his shirt off over his head.

Holy fuck.

Mickey’s blue eyes are not listening to his damn brain right now and keep drifting over in absolute betrayal as Ian slowly pulls on a tightly fitted blue workout shirt made from some kind of wicking material.

He’s got a nice fucking body, Mickey realizes, muscular in all the right places, but not like some big buff asshole either. Just nicely toned and sculpted, in a way that makes him still look real, not some entirely unapproachable Adonis.

He’s perfect.

“Alright, I’ll show you the gym now” Ian says cheerfully after he finishes pulling on his workout shorts, and luckily Mickey had managed to pull his eyes away that time, by forcing his entire body to turn around. Otherwise, he probably would have lost that battle too.

He tags after the redhead casually, sniffing slightly and side eyeing the mostly male visitors already splayed out over the work equipment. It’s not any worse looking equipment wise than his current gym, but its not any better either. Not that either of those facts matter by this point, he thinks.

He’s not here for the fucking equipment.  

“What do you like?” Ian asks, and Mickey startles back into the moment. “Huh?”

Ian gestures around at the equipment and Mickey catches on quickly, “Weights or whatever, pull up bars maybe”.

Ian looks slightly disappointed, “I usually start out on the treadmill, but all that stuff is over there in the back left corner”. Over there in the back left corner where Ian won't be. Mickey quickly covers his mistake, “Oh yeah, running is a good warm up. Let’s do that man”.

Fuck. He fucking hates running. But Ian’s goofy happy grin is back so maybe its not the worst thing in the world, Mickey thinks.

Wrong. It is the worst thing in the world.

He does his best not to gasp out as he forces himself to keep up with the redhead’s punishing pace on their side by side treadmills, but its hard. His gangly and long ass legs are quite an advantage over his own shorter and thicker ones, Mickey thinks, so its not exactly fair.

Finally, after what feels like forever, Ian slows his fucking gazelle-like pace and rubs a hand down his sweat slicked chest through his shirt as he steps down from the treadmill. “Alright I’m done. Feels so good, doesn’t it? I love running” he says, panting happily.

“Yeah me too” Mickey lies as he gratefully leaves his own, “Wanna spot me?” He nudges his head towards his preferred workout equipment. 

Ian nods agreeably, but as they head over towards the bench presses, he points out another separate room with double-wide glass doors as they pass by it, “Dunno if you’re into it, but they do yoga classes here every Saturday and Sunday too”.

Mickey halts dead in his tracks, just staring at the redhead in teasing disbelief until Ian finally starts laughing, shrugging apologetically at the same time, “Okay, okay. I get it. But I said I’d show you around, so that’s what I’m fucking doing”.

“Yoga is just stretching for douchebags” Mickey answers with a smirk, rolling his shoulders a bit before he lays down on the bench. The redhead is laughing again, and he feels like he's in a good spot. This is his chance to impress Ian, regardless of being shorter than the average dude, he’s good at weights, any kind of simple lifting, and always has been. 

“How much?” Ian asks, hovering over him. He’s sweaty, his shiny red hair slightly messy as he pauses above Mickey, and its doing all sorts of things to him.

Mickey licks his lips, glad he wore tight athletic underwear under his shorts tonight, or his sudden rising boner would be entirely present and uninvited.

“Let’s do 175”.

Ian hesitates for just a second, looking at him curiously, but then his eyes settle on his well muscled arms and he nods, adding the weights without comment. He watches silently as Mickey grunts and pushes upwards, feeling his muscles strain beneath the weight, but it’s a good fucking feeling, one he loves, and he does eight reps before he’s really fucking sweating, and starting to hurt.

“Okay, I’m good” he pants, Ian helping to place the weights back up onto the bar. “I’m impressed” Ian tells him bluntly, and Mickey feels a smile crossing his face, too tired to hide it.

“Thanks” he replies, wiping some sweat from his forehead off on the back of his arm. It feels like Ian’s eyes are lingering on him, longer than would be considered normal, and Mickey feels an intense heat wash over him, but as he glances at the clock behind him, a sinking feeling happens in his chest that replaces it.

“I gotta get going dude” he admits reluctantly, “I work overnight at the hospital tonight”.

Ian looks surprised, “Are you-“

“No. I’m a janitor…mechanic. Sort of. Whatever” Mickey shrugs, “Not exactly glamorous but you know, pays the bills”.

“Someone’s got to do it. Cleaning isn’t the worst job I’ve had” Ian says, clearly trying to make him feel better. “Oh yeah? What is?” Mickey asks doubtfully.

“Delivering pizzas. You always get some creepy old guy standing there in his underwear or some girl that thinks its gonna be a real life porno when you show up. And the tips in my neighborhood were crap”.

Mickey considers that as they walk towards the men’s changeroom. Personally, he would not say to no to Ian delivering a pizza to his house, and acting out a possibly R-rated script. “Yeah, you win for shitty jobs…listen, do you want a ride home?” he asks carefully.

Ian grabs his bag from his locker in the change room, nodding his head eagerly, “Yeah. I hate taking the bus”. They walk out to his car, which Mickey had purposefully parked near the back of the lot so it would take them longer to get to it. 

At least it stopped raining.

“I live down on Wallace, you know where that is?” Ian asks as Mickey starts the car, and then starts pulling out of the lot.

Mickey frowns at the street name, and it takes him a minute, but he finally recognizes it. “Yeah... shit, man. I’m only a few streets away”.

“Oh no way” Ian smiles, “Never seen you around”. Mickey shrugs, not wanting to get into his history in the neighborhood. That shit was in the past, and better left there.

“That’s me” Ian finally says, pointing out the car's side window at a small blue house down the street. Mickey slows his Echo, not killing the engine as he stops in front of the house reluctantly, wishing he had more time with Ian. 

And then it happens. _The pause_. The pause that happens before someone gets out of the car and there’s the possibility for something more to happen than just a brief goodbye.

So why the _fuck_ are Mickey’s hands glued to the damn steering wheel? And why are his stupid eyes stuck facing forward? _You’re panicking numb nuts_ , he yells at himself in his head,  _you’re losing your chance dumb-_

“Thanks for the ride” Ian slides casually out the car, and Mickey’s nervous blue eyes finally dart over towards where the redhead is now leaning down to look inside the car before he takes off, “See you around?” he asks, in what might be considered a hopeful tone. 

Mickey nods, trying not to kick himself, “See you around”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Mick, 
> 
> My lovely american readers, can someone please tell me what is a common but cheap coffee shop chain in the states? Like we have Tim Hortons fucking everywhere here, and the coffee is great but also much more affordable. So not Starbuck's (we have those too).


	4. Chapter 4

“If you're having girl problems I feel bad for you son, I got 99 problems and a bitch ain’t one”.

Mickey glares across the kitchen table at his younger sister, who’s dancing around like she’s on fucking holiday or something, holding a spatula in her hand and singing into it like its some goddamn plastic microphone.

She then points it at him like its his fucking turn and nods her head, grinning like a maniac as Hugo sings out his next line from her cracked iPhone 6.  “Can you fucking be serious for a moment?” he demands, smacking the spatula she’s holding out away from his damn face, “Jesus”. 

She pauses, leaning against the kitchen table casually as she prepares to say something to him, but the music is still too loud for his rattled mind, so he snatches her phone away and shuts off the Spotify app.

“Hey!” she protests loudly.

“Mandy!” he shouts back just as firmly, his blue eyes locking with hers so she’ll be serious.

“I don’t know what you want me to fucking tell you Mick! You froze! Like a fucking virgin or something…” she says, her tone lowering as she shrugs in a frustrated confusion that almost matches his own.

He raises a dark eyebrow sharply at her, “Yeah well, I need to unfreeze, or he’s gonna think I’m not into him. And I’m not a fucking virgin, he just makes me…fuck, I don’t know”.

“Nervous?” she supplies helpfully, and as much as he hates that word, he nods his head uncommittedly. That’s probably the best word to describe it.

She frowns, “Honestly… and don’t kill for me saying this, but I think its clear you’re interested in more than some hookup. Or whatever you had with Max. So maybe that’s fucking with your head…and that’s not exactly a bad thing, Mick. If he didn’t do anything yet either, maybe he wants to take things slow”.

She says this all very thoughtfully, as if the ideas are just coming to her mind as she relays them to him, but she does seem sincere, so Mickey doesn’t really get annoyed.

In fact, she kind of has a fucking point. This is different than anything he’s ever encountered before in his severely limited experience in dating. And he’s not bothered about taking things slow with Ian either, that’s fine, he just doesn’t want him to think he’s not interested. That’s the fucking problem. 

“I need to go see him” he finally decides, fiddling with his car keys hesitantly.

“Okay, just…be yourself Mick. I know I know, it sounds fucking gay, but this actually seems like it could turn into… something real, you know?” she finally smiles at him, like she’s happy for him, and it helps boost his confidence a little bit that she saw something between them too.

With that little bit of confidence, he drives over to Crush, taking his time and nodding his head along to the music on his car radio as he does. But when he walks into the supplement shop and looks towards the register, hoping to see the particular redhead, he’s disappointed.

There’s only a fucking girl working here today, some skinny blond. “Hi!” she calls out, noticing how he immediately stopped dead right at the entrance, “Can I help you?”

Mickey’s shoulders drop slightly as he continues to glance around, hoping he maybe just missed seeing Ian working somewhere else in the store. He could ask her if Ian’s going to be in later today but… “No, I’m uh, I’m good” he finally says reluctantly. He doesn’t want to sound like some fucking stalker.

He turns around and walks right out of the store, annoyed at himself, and he doesn’t look where he’s going as he turns directly to the right.

“Jesus!” He hears a sharp yelp of pain from the person he runs directly into, and he’s horrified to look up and realize its Ian, _and_ that he knocked the hot coffee Ian was carrying directly onto his perfectly toned chest.

“Fuck, shit! Sorry!” he says, stepping back from a dripping redhead in guilt, but God, Ian _still_ tries to smile at him, even as he’s gritting his teeth slightly in pain, “Hey. Mickey. How. Are. You?” And at the same time, he quickly yanks his coffee soaked t-shirt off, removing the still steaming material from his reddening skin, and Mickey really wishes he could just die on the spot.

“Dude, I’m really fucking sorry. I’ll get you another coffee” he says weakly. Like that makes up for burning him or something. Jesus Christ he’s an idiot.

But Ian just shakes his head good-naturedly at him, “No, no its fine honestly! My break is actually over, I got to get back in the store anyways”.

“Well what about your shirt?” Mickey says uncomfortably, and for once his eyes actually have an excuse to linger on Ian’s body, even if its only to check out his slightly reddened skin.

“I can get another one inside. Perks of being an ASM” Ian grins, and then he looks at him in confusion, noticing his empty hands. “You didn’t get anything today? Did Karen not help you? I’ve been on her ass about working on her customer service skills, but between me and you, she’s kind of a b-“

“No, no she’s fine. I just…” Mickey scratches the back of his head uncomfortably, “Wanted to know… if you’d want to go to the gym with me again tonight. I quit mine, so I thought I’d go sign up at yours”.

“Oh” Ian actually looks sort of pleased, and there’s a funny little smile on his face as he nods in surprise, “Yeah, course I’ll go with you. But I actually have to babysit my siblings tonight. My shift’s done in three hours though…we could go then instead?”

Mickey nods emphatically, “Sure, I’ll pick you up” but he’s unsure of what else to say after that. Luckily, Ian does it for him, “I really gotta head inside man. See you later”.

Mickey just nods again, and as soon as Ian is gone he hisses to himself in pure mortification, “ _Fuck”._ How the hell did he manage to burn the dude he liked? How on earth was it easier to make happen than just asking him out like a normal human being?

Jesus. Mickey starts to head back to his car, ready to sulk, but as he glances up distractedly he sees the Dunkin Donuts across the street that Ian must have come from, and an idea hits him.

This. He could do this right.

He walks casually across the lot, and enters the coffee shop, taking his time before he goes up to the counter and the waiting cashier.

“Hey, um, do you remember the redheaded guy that just came in here like five, ten minutes ago?” he asks uncomfortably.

“Yeeesss, why?” she asks, looking a little concerned, so he quickly explains, “Whatever he got, I need another one”.

“Um, okay. It was just a medium regular coffee”.

“That’s fine. Actually, make it a large” he says, tapping his debit card impatiently and reaching out to grab the coffee she passes over the counter a minute later.

The walk back across the lot feels like it takes longer than it should, and he grips the coffee’s protective sleeve carefully because his hand is a little sweaty and he doesn’t want to fucking drop it. When he opens the door to Crush, the little bell chiming to announce his entrance, the smile that forms on Ian’s face when he sees its him make his heart skip a fucking beat.

“Hey! You’re back”.

“I owe you a coffee man. I’m really sorry about that, hope you didn’t burn too bad” he says, grimacing as he hands over his apology in the form of caffeine.

“No, no I’m fine! Thanks so much though, that’s really thoughtful of you to get me another one”.

_Thoughtful of you?_

Their fingertips brush as Ian takes the coffee from him, and Mickey’s eyes widen a little at the spark filled contact, but he quickly frowns and clears his throat when he notices the blond co-worker, Karen, is watching them in delight, twirling a finger in her blond locks like this is the best damn thing she’s seen all day.

“Okay” Mickey finally says reluctantly, wishing they didn’t have an audience, “Um, I’m actually gonna go now. I’ll be back at seven”.

Ian smiles, taking a sip of his coffee. “Alright. See you then”.

Mickey raises a dark eyebrow at Karen as he passes by her on the way to the door, daring her to say something, anything, about the awkward flirting she just witnessed. She doesn’t. Not while he’s there at least.

He wastes the next few hours dicking around in the strip mall nearby because it starts to fucking rain again and he doesn’t know what else to do, and then he heads home to change for the gym before he drives back to Crush to wait for Ian in the lot.

This time he’s not closing the store, so he makes his way to Mickey’s car a lot faster, and turns to him breathlessly as soon as he throws himself into the passenger seat and shuts the door behind himself, “Turns out I should thank you for spilling my coffee”.

Mickey reddens slightly. He had been hoping that little incident would perhaps be erased by a sudden convenient bout of amnesia, but of course he had no such luck. “Oh yeah?” he says awkwardly, but Ian just grins, nodding his head, “yeah, the one you bought me was like ten times better”.

“Oh. Well in that case…you’re welcome” he laughs, glancing up in the mirror as he drives to see Ian looking back at him. But the redhead quickly looks away, fixing his gaze outside the window again.

When they get to the gym, Mickey reluctantly follows Ian to the treadmills, running hard for a solid twenty-five minutes or so with him before Ian seems to notice he’s having some trouble matching his pace. “Maybe we should do something else” he suggests casually, and Mickey nods, breathing too hard to answer right away.

“You know” Ian says thoughtfully, as they leave the treadmills to walk across the gym, “I’m surprised that squats aren’t a part of your routine”.

“What?” Mickey looks over at him like he didn’t just hear that comment that sure as hell seemed to be about his ass, and he’s surprised to see Ian’s eyes are wide, like he didn’t mean to actually say that out loud. “What?” Ian repeats blankly, clearing his throat loudly and then quickly pointing over to the bench presses, “You uh, you want to do that again?”

“I…” Mickey wants desperately to tease him, but Ian actually seems uncomfortable for once, so he drops it, “Yeah sure”. He does his set of reps with Ian carefully spotting him, and once he’s done they both settle on just doing arm weights, so they both get in a final workout in before Ian has to head home for his babysitting gig.

Mickey purposefully wore a dark grey muscle shirt to the gym today, and he knows his biceps are on proper display each time he curls his arm with a small grunt, Ian doing similar movements a few feet away from him.

Glancing over in the mirror across from them, he’s pleased to notice Ian’s green eyes flickering down and over at him rather often, a red eyebrow slightly raised in interest, and Mickey subtly puts a little more effort into his flexes.

Eventually, Ian puts his weights down though, shifting his shoulders as he comes back up, “I gotta go man… I can take the bus though, I don’t want to interrupt your workout”.

“No, don’t worry about it. I got weights at home” Mickey quickly tells him, happy to see the smile on Ian’s face as he joins him.

It’s dark outside now, and they fast-walk out to his car, which Mickey actually regrets parking so far from the front of the building this time because the hammering rain has really picked up speed.

Panting and wet, they throw themselves into the Echo as soon as Mickey unlocks the doors, the windshield wipers going furiously to clear his window as Ian turns on Mickey’s radio without asking.

Not that he minds, the music will probably help to fill any silences they might have, and the last thing he wants is anymore fuckin awkwardness between them. He remembers Mandy’s words from this morning, _“this actually seems like it could turn into something real, you know?”_

He’s paying close attention to the road because its so damn dark and drizzly out, but its really fucking hard to stay focused when Ian says sort of quietly, “Wish I didn’t have to babysit tonight”.  

What exactly did he mean by that? Mickey wonders.

When he pulls in front of Ian’s house ten minutes later, he pauses, Ian seeming in no rush to get out of the car either. Instead, under the glow of Mickey’s car light he kicks gently at some trash on the floor in front of his seat.

The radio is still playing softly, some upbeat song that he doesn’t really pay attention to as he watches Ian, more comfortable than the last time they sat together like this.

Mickey smirks a bit at the sight of the trash, a McDonald’s bag that ended up there after one of his many payback favors to Mandy over the past week. “Yeah. That’s actually my sister’s, because I don’t treat my car like it’s a trash bin, but I can’t say the same for her”.

Ian laughs, “I wasn’t judging. But I might be now, do you not like McDonald’s man?” Mickey turns to him very seriously, “I’m not some fucking psycho if that’s what you’re asking. But there are better burger joints, seriously”.

“Hmm. Maybe you should take me to one sometime, let me judge for myself”.

Oh shit!  

Mickey’s cheeks are definitely burning again. That is directly asking him out, he doesn’t need Mandy translating that one. Ian’s watching him, looking slightly less confident now, and the silence is starting to stretch for too long, the song on the radio blaring out in a way that seems louder than it did before.

_‘You make me so nervous I shake, I wanna be near you every second I'm awake’_

“I…yeah. I’d be down for that” Mickey says quickly, gripping the steering wheel again and willing himself not be a fucking spaz about it.

Ian bites his lip, his red eyebrows twitching slightly under the soft light in the car as he says, “So…it’s a date”.

Not a question, a statement, but Mickey feels the need to answer anyways. He nods, his throat feeling very dry all of a sudden.

_‘You make me so nervous I shake, I wanna be near you every second I'm awake’_

The windshield wipers continue to beat across the glass in front of him, and the sound is practically matching the thudding in his chest right now.

What is that called? When the environment matches your mood or whatever? Pathetic… fallacy or something?

_‘You make me so nervous I shake (Please don't go)’_

Why the _fuck_ is he thinking about that right _now_? And why is this song making his fucking cheeks flush?

_‘I wanna be near you every second I'm awake (Please don’t go)’_

Ian finally reaches over to shove open the car door, and he’s sliding across the seat, halfway out of the car and back into the night rain before Mickey finds his voice.

“Ian…wait”.


	5. Chapter 5

Ian doesn’t need to be asked twice, in fact, it’s like he reads Mickey’s damn mind.

He immediately pulls back into the car, slamming the door shut and resealing himself inside the dimly lit Echo with Mickey before he launches himself sideways towards him, one hand snaking out to grab the back of Mickey’s head and pull him in closer.

The second his warm lips connect with Mickey’s, Mickey feels that warmth he always hated creeping up over his skin faster than ever before, but it barely crosses his mind now because all he can think about, all he can focus on, is the hand gripping the back of his head, the damp red hair pressing against his own, and the eager tongue pressing in past his open lips.

Fuck he tastes good… He smells good too, sweat and all, the scent pulling at Mickey’s groin and igniting it like it awakens some primal instinct he didn’t even know he had.

He’s not exactly sure how much time passes as they sit there making out in his car, heads turning and tongues pushing while the rain beats down and the wipers continue their reassuring thud, thud, thud, against the windshield, but it feels like forever in the best of ways.

Finally, the redhead pulls away from him with a slight gasp, pressing his lips together firmly as he searches Mickey’s blue eyes for just a moment.

“Text me” he whispers, and just like that, he’s out of the car and into the rain, running up to his house before he disappears inside.

Mickey sits there stunned for at least a solid minute. _Did that actually happen?_

God he’d fucking _imagined_ it before, but he thought the most he would actually get when he asked Ian to wait would be a quick goodbye kiss, not a breath stealing, heart pounding, fucking boner inducing make out session.

Jesus Christ. He drives home in a thrilled daze to jump in the shower and hastily rub one out before he heads off to work, knowing he’ll be replaying that entire scene in his mind over and over again, and because Mandy’s not home, well, she’ll just have to wait to hear about what happened.

He gets home from a long shift of distracted mopping of rain slicked floors and disinfecting discharged patient’s rooms, and collapses onto his bed, sleeping in until well past noon, that is, until he feels a gentle but firm shove against his face.

His forehead creases, “Fuck off” he mumbles into his pillow.

“No, you promised if I helped, you’d tell me how it went. What happened?” his younger sister prods insistently, as Mickey opens his eyes to squint at her, “Pretty sure I never said that”.

He never said that.

“It was implied”.

“Fuck off”.

“You’re already awake, come on!” she practically whines.

The memory of last night flashes back into his mind, and an uncontrollable smile crosses his face, so he pushes his face back down into his pillow for privacy. She doesn’t have to see how gone he is on the guy already.

“Oh come the fuck on, you can’t make a face like that and not say anything. What happened Mick?” she urges, still yanking at his arm.

Fuck. She’s not gonna give up. “Alright, alright” he slowly pulls himself up on his old mattress, pushing her away from himself gently so she’ll give him some damn space.

He relays the events of the previous day, carefully leaving the fact that he spilled hot coffee all over Ian beforehand, “I went and picked him up from Crush, and we went to his gym again. The fucker likes to run, so last time I lied and said I did too. I’m starting to fucking regret that”.

“Well of course” she says impatiently, “Then what?”

“Then he said something about being surprised that I don’t do squats, and I bench pressed like 175 again, and he said he was impressed last time so-”.

She interrupts unapologetically, “Great Mickey, but did anything actually happen or did you two just display to each other all night?”

“Not at first, I had to drop him off at his house after because he said he had to babysit, dipshit. But then we’re sitting there outside his house or whatever right, and he says I should take him out for a burger some time, and I said yeah, I’d be down for that, and he says alright then, _it’s a date”._

Her dark eyebrows shoot up, excited for him, and he has to admit, its kind of nice that she gives a shit. He’s never been supportive of any of her own boyfriends, or even that interested to be honest. But things had changed since he moved back in to his old house temporarily.

“But then he goes to get out of the car and I’m like fuck it, don’t be a pussy again Mick, so I ask him to wait. But before I can even say anything else he just launches at my face. Fuck… he makes out ten times better than Max ever did. He’s like the exact fucking opposite of him in every way”.

“Shut up about Max” she says, waving her hand like he’s an insignificant insect, “You’ve barely mentioned him since you met Ian, don’t start now”.

“Well yeah its because Ian is ten times more interesting than that stupid fuck ever was” he responds indignantly.

“Have you talked to him since yesterday?”

“No dumbass, you just barged in here and woke me up” he snaps, grabbing for his phone as he quickly remembers the last thing Ian said to him.

_Text me._

He finally manages to get Mandy out of his room, but as he stands there looking at the blank text directed to Ian, he gets nervous. The fuck was he even supposed to say after that? What did Ian want from him? A date, clearly, but that was one hell of a make out session. He’s not sure how he can address that without sounding like a horn dog, or some fuck boy as Mandy would say, so he eventually just decides not to.

_Sent_ : Hey.

_Received:_ Hey, how was work last night?

_Received:_ :)

Okay, the smile helps a little. He can actually picture it on Ian, and it feels like this is going well so far.

_Sent:_ Good. Was thinking where to take you. No Bull Burgers is pretty decent.

_Received_ : Never been! Sounds great. When do you want to go?

_Sent:_ Tonight?

He waits for a while, biting his thumbnail nervously. Was that too soon? Was there a protocol for this sort of thing, for when you should ask someone on a date after they made out with you?

_Received:_ Yeah, would it be too much of a pain in the ass for you to pick me up from my place? Like around six?

_Sent_ : No

_Sent_ : :)

Jesus. Mickey barrels out of his bedroom and directly towards the second bathroom for a shower, but Mandy’s already beating him there. “Uh, no, I was here first” she says, slamming the door in his face.

“Fuck off! I have a date I need to get fucking ready for”.

She opens the door just a crack, blue eyes peeking out at him mischievously, “ _Bow chicka wow wow_. When?”

He rolls his eyes, not in the mood for her shit. “Six”.

She shuts the door again, her voice slightly muffled behind it, “Fuck off, you still have like five hours!”

“Bitch” Mickey mutters even though she has a point, retreating to his room and slamming the door. He distracts himself working out with his own weights, playing some video games, and drinking a couple beers for the next few hours until it actually is time to get ready.

After a long shower and carefully combing his dark hair into what he thinks looks decent, he goes for dark jeans, black and white Adidas, a grey hoodie and a light black leather jacket. Casual, but not too casual. Like he made an actual fucking effort choosing his outfit, but wasn’t a spaz about it either.

The drive to Ian’s house is slightly more nerve-wracking this time, because its actually got the word _date_ attached to it today, whatever they are doing. To be honest, Mickey’s not even really sure what that means. The only dates he’s ever been on were pretty much limited to a couch, a Tv, and a six pack. So he really doesn’t want to fuck this up.

And then to make matters worse, Ian doesn’t just come running down the steps to his car when Mickey pulls up. No, he opens the front door and keeps waving him over.

Fuck. Mickey reluctantly leaves the relative safety of his Echo and walks up the front steps to the house, unsure of everything he’s doing at this point.

“Hey!” Ian says brightly, eyes running down over his outfit. Mickey realizes it’s the first time he’s seen him in pretty much anything other than athletic gear.

“You look really good. Would you… totally hate coming in and saying hi for a minute?” the redhead asks hopefully.

Ian looks good too. Really good.

“No” Mickey lies, coming inside with him and trying to wrap his head around why Max didn’t even ask him to meet his mother, not once, in six months, and yet Ian was asking him to meet his family on the first date.

All Max had said was that he didn’t think she would like him.

He glances around Ian’s house as he enters, seeing some younger kids loafing on the couch and two older looking… siblings he guesses, hanging out in the kitchen that raise their hands in welcome as he steps inside.

The actual little kids aren’t too interested in him, but Ian brings him into the kitchen to say hello to the other two.

The brother immediately puts out a hand, “Hey man, name’s Lip. Ian’s older brother”.

Mickey tries not to frown, who the fuck names their kid Lip? But he shakes the guys hand anyways and then waves at Ian’s sister, who he objectively can tell is beautiful, regardless of the fact he’s gay.

Makes sense, considering she’s related to Ian.

“I’m Fiona” she waves back with a smile, “Sorry about this. We bugged Ian to bring you in and say hi. But he kinda has been talking about you since you first showed up at Crush, so I’m not sure what else he expected”.

Mickey looks over at Ian in surprise, and now its his date’s turn to blush, “I might have mentioned that an interesting guy came in a few times. Not that I thought it would come back to bite me in the ass” he says pointedly, clearly slightly annoyed.

“Get used to it, you’re a Gallagher” Lip smirks before he turns to Mickey again, frowning slightly as he stares at him. “Hey, what’s your last name?”

“Milkovich” Mickey supplies bluntly, wondering why the fuck he cares. But then Ian’s older brother nods, “Yeah I thought I recognized you when you came in. We went to highschool together man. I think we had a couple of the same classes in grade nine or ten”.

Mickey thinks hard. He graduated two years ago, but he didn’t even go to his grad, so he doesn’t exactly have a huge memory of who he went to highschool with. He pretty much kept to himself all four years, it was easier that way.

“Yeah, maybe”.

“I didn’t know you were gay”.

Fiona’s eyes flash towards her younger brother in warning, but he doesn’t seem to be saying it in an offensive way. Still, Mickey tenses slightly.

“So?”

“Nothing, just would have introduced you to Ian a lot sooner” he laughs, his younger brother reddening again. To be honest, Mickey finds it kind of nice that he’s not the only one getting flustered now that they’ve actually addressed the fact they’re attracted to each other. Maybe Ian’s just as inexperienced as he is when it comes to this sort of thing.

“Alright, now that you guys did your damn inquisition, can we go? I’m fucking starving, and ready to be judgemental as fuck” Ian says with an uncomfortable laugh, and Mickey nods in agreement, raising his eyebrows as he waves a quick and awkward goodbye.

Step one of date: meeting the family (and probably the hardest part), done.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, question. Originally I was gonna cut off the fic like super early, basically after he asked him on a date, but I changed my mind. I still want to do a little more, but my question is, should I keep this Teen rated? Like they never actually get past first base? Or option 2, keeping them awkward and cute like this, they can slowly get to more. But I would change the rating. Let me know :)


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys voted unanimously for option 2 so I'll update the rating when the time comes :D and thank you so much everyone for the feedback I'm having fun with this one <3 I'll try to keep updating daily but I've got a lot to do for school (and another fic on the go) so we'll see :P

“Sorry about that” Ian says uncomfortably as soon as they get into Mickey’s car, “I literally thought it was gonna be a quick you know, hi bye sort of thing”.

“S’fine” Mickey shrugs reassuringly, starting his car without much comment. He doesn’t even know how these sorts of things are supposed to go, initial meetings of the family, but it feels like they didn’t hate the fact he was taking out their brother.

That’s a win, right?

But Ian bites his lip a little anyways, seeming uncertain. “Did that like…freak you out? I didn’t mean it as a meet the family really”.

Mickey laughs awkwardly as they reach a green light, glancing both ways quickly before he really hits the gas again, “That’s exactly what it was, but I don’t care dude. Your family seems cool”.

He feels a little more comfortable knowing that he’s not the only one that’s nervous about the whole going on a date thing, and then Ian laughs too, seeming more like himself again with a little smile, “Yeah I guess. I’m sorry, I just…I really like you”.

Mickey’s heart burns a little, in a way that has fuck all to do with digestion. “Yeah?” he asks hopefully, glancing over at Ian as he continues to drive down the road. Really likes him…he doesn’t think anyone has ever said that to him before.

“Yeah. After the first time you came in to Crush, I actually took over some of my coworkers shifts just so I’d be in more often in case you came back” Ian admits, sounding a little shy. “I think Karen figured it out when you came in with that coffee for me yesterday though, God she was teasing me”.

Holy fuck. While Mickey thought he was making a complete ass of himself and not even sure if Ian knew he liked him, the dude was making his own damn moves! He also can’t believe Ian gives enough a shit about him to actually work more shifts, just in case he happened to come in again. It's kind of a good feeling.

“Well, if we’re being honest, I lied about needing snacks between workouts man” Mickey grins happily, turning his head briefly as the next light turns green to look over at him, “Just wanted to see you”.

When they pull into No Bull’s parking lot, he sees Ian’s face is flushed just slightly pink with pleasure from his own admission, and then he smirks, remembering what Ian said earlier before they left the Gallagher house. “Here we are dude. Put your best bitch face on”.

Ian tries (and fails) to make a decent bitchy expression with a raised eyebrow, and they both just end up laughing again as they go inside.

“I lied” Ian admits, “I’m not actually super judgmental, and I fucking love burgers. So, I’ll probably be happy with anything. But that said, what do you like?” he asks, frowning a bit at the menu board.

“Whiskey burger, comes with a fat fucking onion ring right in the middle of it” Mickey answers without hesitation. Ian seems to be cool with that, so they order the same thing, but then they both pull out their debit cards to pay at the exact same moment.

Mickey knows that with straight dates in general; the guy usually offers to pay. But they’re _both_ guys, and clearly thinking the same thing. “No, I’ll pay” Ian insists, but Mickey shoves him away pretty easily, deciding he really wants to pay for his date, “I got it tough guy”.

Ian smiles and gives in while the cashier eyes them impatiently, but then the redhead carries the tray of food over to a booth for him, so frankly, Mickey feels they’re even in terms of gestures. As they sit down together, he's glad he has some food to focus on, because he's not really sure what to do next. He just likes being near the other guy. 

“So… you met my family” Ian says helpfully as he starts in on his extra crispy fries, “Tell me about yours”.

Mickey pauses, _did_ he meet Ian’s entire family? Little kids, brothers and sisters…not really. But whatever, “Not much to tell” he says carefully after he swallows a bite of his burger, “I’m staying at my old house with my younger sister, Mandy, right now. Who you met. Um... I don’t actually know my mom, she kinda fucked off when I was too little to remember her much. And my dad died last year”.

“Oh shit, sorry to hear that” Ian says softly, a normal and appropriate response, but Mickey actually smiles, thumbing some mayo away from the corner of his mouth as he answers, “It’s actually a good thing. You’d get it if you knew him, but I’m glad you didn’t. Cause he’d kick your ass if he did”.

Also, if he hadn’t of died, Mickey probably wouldn’t be on this date right now, but he leaves that part out. He wasn't proud of how scared of his dad he'd been. He was the only person in Mickey's life who had that effect on him, and now that he's gone, it all feels like freedom. 

Ian frowns, looking confused for a moment by the statement but then the light bulb goes off in his brain, “Fag beater?”

“Yup, South Side’s finest”.

“Well that’s fucking ironic” Ian laughs, shaking his head at the ridiculousness, “I’ve got a nice set of shit parents too, but both are alive and just doing their own thing. It’s just my brothers and sisters and me at my house”.

Well that makes sense, Mickey thinks, so technically he did meet Ian’s entire family. And then he remembers to add, maybe to make himself sound better, “I actually have my own place. It’s a crappy bachelor pad though”.

Ian seems surprised, “But its your own place! Why wouldn’t you stay there?”

Shit.

Mickey had just backed himself into the worst mistake you can make on a date, bringing up the ex. Mandy fucking warned him not to, and here he goes anyways. 

Ian waits patiently for response while Mickey takes a long and reluctant pull from his drink before answering. He could lie. There were lots of excuses he could make. Oh, I ended my lease, and I’m moving. There’s mold spores on the walls so I can't stay there. Mandy needs help around the place so I came back.

But he doesn’t want to lie to Ian, regardless of what Mandy might have told him. Not about something important.

“To be honest with you man, my ex lives in the same building. We broke up I guess like four weeks ago now, and I haven’t been back since”.

Ian bites his lip, his expression finally changing to one less open.

“Oh”.

They are both quiet for a moment and Mickey searches Ian’s lowered green eyes, picking up on what he’s thinking. “Ian, its not because I give a shit anymore. I’m honestly just kind of fucking embarrassed. He was cheating on me and I was too stupid to figure it out. And…to be honest, I guess I understand why. I wasn’t a good boyfriend”.

Ian’s brow furrows, “I find that hard to believe”.

Mickey shakes his head, “Well, I guess I’m different around you. This, what we're doing right now, never would have happened because I didn’t want to actually go out and do shit with him. He was really fucking annoying sometimes man”.

They are both silent for about half a second before they start to laugh at how ridiculous that sounds, “Why the fuck would you date him then?” Ian asks, his cheeks red with amusement as he shakes his head.

“I dunno, I’m a fucking idiot man. Honestly. I was getting used to being out of the closet and kind of just went for the easiest thing”.

“But that’s different now right?” Ian asks, his tone getting careful again as he watches him. “Not to sound like I expect anything, but... I don’t really want to be a rebound or anything”.

“You’re fucking not” Mickey assures him, his blue eyes focused on Ian’s, “Farthest thing from it. Like…I ask my sister for advice on you”. He blushes as he realizes what he just said, “Fuck, that’s like the exact opposite of what you tell your date isn’t it?”

“No” Ian laughs, “I think its cute. I told my brother Lip about you, he was the one that said I should quit waiting and just grow a pair and ask you out”.

Cute. He's never been described like that before. Mickey shrugs internally, he’ll take it.

“So how’s the burger?” he finally asks, remembering why they came here in the first place. Ian nods, mouth full, and gives him an enthusiastic thumbs up, “Really good”.

Mickey grins, taking another huge bite of his own. He watches Ian eat a little shyly, not sure what to say next after their initial getting to know each other conversation, but Ian does it for him, lightening the mood again, “You like ice cream?”

“Does a bear shit in the woods?” Mickey grins. 

“Do they?” Ian repeats back, staring at him blankly. Mickey hesitates, until he realizes Ian’s just fucking with him, and he laughs, “Fuck off. Yes I like ice cream, who doesn’t?”

“People who have an aversion to cold dairy products I guess” Ian laughs, wiping his mouth on his napkin as he finishes his burger, “How about... next time I treat?”

 _Next time_. 

Mickey blushes, but its not as deep this time. “You asking me on a date?”

He’s actually kind of relieved, and thrilled, that this went well enough for Ian to want to go on a second date. To take _him_ out.

Ian reaches across the table, resting his pale fingers gently over his, and Mickey stares down at his hand. It feels like the nerves in that arm are jumping and yelling to him, so Mickey flexes his fingers and gives in, pressing them through Ian’s, the warmth of his larger palm emanating to his own through the empty space between them.

“Yeah Mickey… I’m asking you on a date”.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra fluffy date chapter to make up for what will likely be a couple days until the next one! Midterms ;(

_*Ping*_

Half asleep, Mickey quickly rolls over in his lumpy bed to grasp for his cell phone on the nightstand, slapping his hand around on the flat wooden surface until he finds it.

Bringing his phone close to his sensitive eyes while squinting in the darkness, he reads the text, a smile forming on his face as he sees its from Ian, exactly what he was hoping for when he heard the alert.

 _Received:_ Hey how was work today? Mine was shit, favorite customer didn’t come in ;(

Mickey knows exactly what Ian’s doing but he plays along anyways. Flirting is something he didn’t know he needed in his life until it was actually happening with the cute redhead.

Now he practically craved the warm feeling that came over him when Ian boldly flirted with him.

 _Sent:_ Shit, eh? Who’s your favorite customer?

 _Received_ : This guy. Blue eyes, amazing smile. Seen him around?

Currently smiling to himself like a fucking idiot, Mickey thinks about how to respond in a way that keeps the joke going.

Their schedules had clashed poorly for the past two days, and that was the only reason he hadn’t been able to come in today or yesterday. Although things were going pretty fucking good every time they talked through text, they hadn’t actually kissed or anything since that first night in his car, and Mickey was itching to see him again.

 _Sent:_ Yeah, I think he was promised ice cream? ;) Maybe he’s holding out for that.

A minute or two later, he gets the perfect response.

 _Received:_ I’ll do him one better. Movie, and then ice cream.

Mickey grins, there it is. The second date. Fuck if he feels like a teenaged girl getting excited for this shit.

 _Sent:_ Fuck. He’s gonna have to come out of hiding I think.

 _Received:_ Great. Meet me at the theatre tomorrow? There’s a 1 p.m. showing of “It” if you’re cool with that? Or there’s Bladerunner at 1:15.

 _Sent:_ Whatever you want.

 _Sent:_ Can’t wait.

-

Mickey swings his tattooed hands at his sides a little awkwardly as he waits outside the Cineplex movie theatre for Ian, just now realizing he got here a little earlier than he had planned. He’s already gone through two nervous cigarettes wondering if this was one of those scenarios where you are _supposed_ to fucking show up late. Fashionably or whatever.

Deciding that’s probably bullshit, he’s just about to go inside and buy the tickets himself so they won’t be late for the actual movie starting, when he hears Ian’s reassuring voice call out “ _Mickey_!” and he turns to see the lanky redhead jogging towards him breathlessly from the sidewalk.

“Sorry” Ian breathes with a happy but apologetic smile as he reaches his side, “Bus was running a little late”.

Mickey frowns at the mention of Chicago’s public transport, which Ian had previously proclaimed to hate. “Why didn’t you just ask for a ride man?”

“Well I was coming from work so it would have been out of your way” Ian explains, walking into the theatre and holding open the glass door for Mickey to come in after him, “And besides, on my shitty journey here, I had time to decide that we should see It”.

“Oh yeah? Why that one?” Mickey asks with an amused smirk as they get into the fairly short line together. Ian just smiles at him, scuffing his converse in a way that might be considered a little shy against the theatre’s deep red carpeting as he answers.

“Well…it’s really scary”.

“And? You like that shit or something?”

Ian shrugs innocently, but Mickey still clues in after a few seconds of staring at him. Total cliché, going to see a scary movie so you can grab at the person you’re with, but he really doesn’t fucking care. Ian can grab him as much as he wants.

Ian pays for their tickets and a large extra buttered popcorn for them to share, and they head into their theatre right as the first few scenes are playing, so they take two seats in the very back without disturbing anyone.

Mickey tries to follow what they’ve missed. There’s just some kid running down the street in the pouring fucking rain, so it looks like not much. Ian leans over and whispers beside his ear, his warm breath making Mickey’s skin tingle, “I read the book. That’s Georgie” as he shoves some popcorn in his mouth.

His redheaded date slinks down in his seat as the boy goes up to some storm drain and starts talking to some sketchy looking clown, which Mickey thinks is all levels of fucked-up, until the clown transforms and reaches out and snatches the fucking kid!

“ _What the fuck_!” he whispers loudly, turning to Ian in disbelief, who just shakes his head innocently, “I told you it was scary!”

“It’s not…scary, its just fucked up!” Mickey whispers back, but then someone in front of them turns around to eye them in annoyance for talking too much. He flips them off to show just how much he gives a shit about their opinion but shuts up anyways. He doesn’t want to get kicked out of the theatre and ruin their date.

Okay, he might have lied, the movie is scary, but every time him and Ian lunge in their seats at a jump scare scene, they both end up stifling their laughter for the next five minutes at least, and when Ian looks at him, there’s almost tears of laughter in his eyes as he frantically eats more buttery popcorn, shoving the crumpled bag at Mickey to take more.

He has to admit, this is a lot more fun than he thought it would be.

Normally he doesn’t go to movie theatres all that often unless Mandy drags him out when she can’t get one of her friends to go, because he’s just more comfortable just watching movies at home with a beer in his hand, but experiencing it with Ian is something entirely different. 

He’s not expecting one scene, when the chick Beverly smashes her dad’s head in with a toilet tank lid or whatever, which is fine but then right as she turns in relief that he’s finally dead (fucker reminded Mickey of Terry a little bit) the fucking clown is _right there_ and instantly grabs her.

Ian shouts out in surprise as they both jump in their seats again, along with everyone else in the theatre as the score strikes loud and dramatic, “HOLY FUCK!”

“Shhh, shut the fuck up” Mickey laughs quietly, putting out a tattooed hand to cover his date’s mouth gently as Ian starts to laugh too loudly again. Ian looks over at him, green eyes shining, but when Mickey lowers his hand away to take it back to his own armrest, thinking maybe he shouldn’t have touched him like that without asking, Ian reaches out and grabs it back.  

And not just a quick clasp or anything either, like what they did at the burger joint, he _holds on_ , and Mickey can’t stop staring at their perfectly joined hands resting on the cheap red armrest in the dim flickering light of the movie theatre.

Ian must notice his strong reaction, because he leans in to whisper softly while searching his date’s eyes, “Is it okay if I hold your hand?” He almost sounds worried.

Mickey wants to kiss him so badly right now. Every time he leans in like that to whisper, and his warm breath drifts over Mickey’s skin, his blue eyes practically shut of their own accord in ghosted pleasure.

_Take it slow._

He meets his date’s hopeful green eyes, flexing his own pale fingers into a tighter grip within Ian’s in response, and then he smiles with a little nod, “Yeah”, before Ian turns back to the big screen.

Jesus. He’s full out _holding hands_ with _Ian_. On a _date_.

And somehow… that was more exciting to him that actually full out hooking up with someone had ever fucking been. There was something to be said for taking it slow, he realizes with a little smile.  

As soon as the two-hour horror movie is over and they head out of the dark and crowded theatre, blinking in relief at both the light and somewhat the creepy movie being over, Ian lets go of his hand, and Mickey finds he misses the feeling of it a little as they walk down the street towards a Baskin Robbins for the second half of their date.

So after a quiet minute or two he asks, a little nervously, “Is it cool if I hold your hand again?”

Ian looks over in surprise, but then quickly nods, so Mickey grabs his hand, a little awkwardly at first, and he kind of wishes he wiped his slightly sweaty palm off first, but whatever… Ian doesn’t seem to be complaining.

In fact, there’s a huge smile on his face.

Mickey knows a few people glance over at them when they walk into the ice-cream shop together holding hands, but he doesn’t really care. He’s gonna give up the feeling he gets being around Ian just because it makes them uncomfortable?

Fuck em.

And nobody actually says anything, possibly because his own hand looped into Ian’s holds the first half of a warning: FUCK U-UP.

“What do you want?” Ian asks, turning to look at him as Mickey skims over the flavors, his mouth already salivating at the promising names. He’s never met an ice-cream he didn’t fucking like.

“Shit, I dunno” he admits, “Kind of torn between Snicker’s or just plain Bananas and Strawberries. What about you?”

“Also torn. Can we get one waffle cone with one scoop of Snickers and one scoop of Bananas and Strawberries, and a second waffle cone with one Icing on the Cake, one Chocolate Fudge?” Ian says to the employee, who gets working on their ice-creams right away.

“Shit” Mickey says, with his dark eyebrows raised in teasing manner, “You don’t fuck around with ice-cream”.

“No I do not. You know how fucking long a tub of ice-cream lasts in a house with six kids? Trick question, it doesn’t” Ian laughs, exchanging his hard-earned money for their generously scooped cones.

“Let’s go outside” Mickey suggests. It’s pretty nice and sunny out today, and besides that, he doesn’t like having people around to watch him possibly fail as he tries to figure out dating. So far he’s just going along with things, and Ian seems happy, so he hopes that’s enough.

He just really doesn’t want to fuck this up. Two dates in, Ian is already one of the best things to have happened to him.

The two of them walk around for a while together eating their ice-creams and talking about the movie critically until they spot a little side park with some trees they can sit underneath. After finishing their treats in the sunshine, mouths still entirely cold, Ian jokes, “Gonna need to double my treadmill time if I keep going out for burgers and ice cream like this”.

Mickey rolls his blue eyes at him playfully, not relishing the thought of that. “A, we’re not going out for friggin salads on our next date Ian. B, you know you’re fucking perfect the way you are, right?”

Ian smiles to himself, looking down at the grass for a moment before he glances over at him again.

He’s giving him some sort of slightly shy look now, one that Mickey’s not quite sure of, but it feels inviting, so he shifts upwards on the grass, leaning in closer to him to see if that changes anything.

Ian just continues to watch him, green eyes drifting helpfully down to his lips and then up again, and Mickey finally clues in.

Ian wants him to make the first move this time.

Heart pounding a little faster in his chest, he just fucking does it, not giving himself enough time to second guess anything.

He leans in the rest of the way towards Ian to close the space between them. Their slightly parted lips meet, still cold and sweet with notes of chocolate from their ice creams, and it feels rather innocent at first.

Not that that’s a bad thing, at all, Mickey thinks. His lips are against Ian’s, and it feels wonderful as they slowly kiss, the tree rustling gently above them when a breeze passes through the park.

It feels peaceful, like this is exactly where he is supposed to be.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kind of a filler chapter just because I wanted to write something during a study break but I hope you still like it <3 They are still building their feelings for each other though and they do have sort of an important conversation near the end :)

Mickey pushes open the door to Crush, and as soon as the little bell chimes to announce his arrival in the health supplements store, he hears a familiar voice calling out to him, “I’ll be with you in a minute!”

He stops exactly where he is and waits patiently for Ian to stand up and turn around and realize that its him. He didn’t actually say he would be stopping by, but he ‘just happened’ to be driving this way on his way home from the hospital and thought, why not stop by Crush and see his…crush?

Ian finally gets up from his awkward place squatting in front of a shipment of new vitamins while he checked off order marks on his clipboard and turns, initially frowning towards the customer that didn’t even bother to answer him.

But when he sees it’s actually Mickey standing there, his face lights up in innocent surprise, and a brilliant smile immediately forms that makes Mickey’s heart feel like it skipped a damn beat.

In all his life, no one’s ever been that excited or happy to see it’s him. But Ian is. Ian’s always happy to see him.

“You didn’t say you were stopping by” Ian says cheerfully, forgetting about his rather important shipment entirely and coming over to stand in front of him, appreciating the view. Mickey can’t imagine why anyone would look at him like that while he’s wearing his friggin janitorial uniform, he didn’t bother changing before he left the hospital, but fuck if it doesn’t feel kind of good.

“Yeah, well I was just driving by and thought I’d come in and say hi” Mickey says, rubbing the back of his stiff neck as he looks up at the happy redhead. He’s pretty exhausted from his shift, but he always feels sort of energized around Ian.

Ian looks back at him for a moment before he smiles softly, and then he leans in to give him a quick but meaningful kiss that makes Mickey’s pulse quicken in response.

“I’m glad you did”.

Both boys then turn to look as they hear someone coming noisily out of the backroom, and the blonde employee, Karen, grins with some amusement when she sees the two of them standing so close together.

“What, no coffee this time?” she quips.

Mickey rolls his blue eyes and starts to flip her off, but somehow manages to control his easily offended hand at the very last minute from going through with it. He doesn’t want to insult Ian’s co-worker and get him in trouble or something.  

Her intrigued eyes notice the suggestive movement but still flicker over towards him boldly, clearly not finding him threatening in the slightest. “You gonna introduce us this time Ian?”

Ian shakes his red head like he couldn’t believe he forgot to, “Shit, yeah. This is my- this is Mickey” he says, awkwardly stumbling over his words in a way that’s kind of fucking adorable, actually, if Mickey had to put a word to it.

Both of them blush a little at the word ‘my’ being used to describe him by accident, and she raises both of her perfectly groomed eyebrows at them, prompting her assistant manager again, “And…? I’m Karen”.

“Right. That’s Karen” Ian agrees, bobbing his head like he somehow fucking forgot how introductions work.

Mickey flashes back to what Ian said about her being kind of a bitch and tries not to laugh. Instead, he just nods before turning his attention back to Ian completely, muttering a little bit as he asks so she doesn’t overhear, “You wanna take a break and get a coffee or whatever?”

Ian glances down at his watch and looks genuinely sorry as he reluctantly declines, “I can’t man. We close in a half hour…but we could hang out after if you want?”

_If he wants?_

When _doesn’t_ Mickey want to be around him?

“Yeah…sounds good. Ten-hour shift so… I’m gonna go crash in my car for a bit, just knock on the window or whatever and wake me up when you’re done” he says, and he debates kissing Ian again before he leaves, but Karen is still staring cheekily at them, so he lets it go.

“Have a good nap!” Ian calls out after him with a little laugh, and Mickey smiles like a tired idiot all the way to his Echo, pushing his worn out front seat back so he can try and get some much needed catch up sleep before Ian comes outside to get him.

Completely exhausted, he drifts off quickly, dozing in the front seat while he vaguely dreams of him and Ian hanging out together. He can’t tell exactly where they are…maybe the harbour? There’s water there. He can’t tell why exactly they are there either, but he’s happy. They both are.

A repeated loud knocking startles him out of his sleep almost an hour later and he jumps in agitation, blinking rapidly until he sees an apologetic looking Ian standing outside his window, waving.

Shit, that had gone fast. Mickey quickly unlocks his car and rolls the window down, “Hey” he says softly.

“Hey” Ian breathes back, “Sorry I woke you up”.

Mickey stretches his limbs and cracks his neck, and laughs at his polite apology, “I fucking asked you to. Anyways, I was thinking…” he looks out around the dark parking lot, mostly empty of its previous cars now that all the stores are closing, “Maybe we could go to the harbour or something? Just chill there, look at the boats and shit”.

It sounds mildly stupid even coming out of his own fucking mouth, but the idea hit him as soon as he was abruptly woken up from his dream. He kind of wanted to be alone with Ian, but he knew Mandy was at home tonight, and he figured Ian’s usually packed house would be a no-go too.

“Yeah, sure” Ian climbs agreeably into the Echo, relaxing in the passenger seat Mickey has started subconsciously referring to as “his”.

Ian sits there more than anyone else anyways, and it feels right having him there beside him.

During the leisurely nighttime drive down to the South Side harbour, Ian rests his palm casually against Mickey’s thigh without comment, and Mickey almost jumps at first from the unexpected contact, but then settles into the warm weight on his leg, deciding its kind of nice.

“You ever drive?” he asks after a while, and Ian shakes his head, “No. Never had a car to learn in”.

 “I could teach you if you want” Mickey offers, glancing over at him before he brings his eyes back to the road to park on the street running alongside the harbour.

Ian nods eagerly as they get out of the car together to walk the rest of the way down the small hill towards the water, “That would be awesome. I’ll try not to crash it” he jokes.

“Didn’t think of that when I offered” Mickey laughs, “Good thing it’s a piece of shit anyways”.

The grass is already wet and dewy beneath their feet, soaking through their running shoes while they walk down towards the dock together, but its peaceful here at night, the boats tethered along the docks bobbing gently in the dark water while dim lights make everything feel a little more (what Mickey would assume is called) romantic.  

That word feels right.

“So you uh, like boats or whatever?” Ian asks, obviously trying to make conversation as they hit the docks and approach a Sea Way boldly named in golden calligraphy, ‘The Great Escape’.

“Huh?” Mickey looks over at him in confusion, and the redhead sort of shrugs as he gestures around himself, “I thought you wanted to look at the boats”.

“No I wanted to look-“ Mickey cuts himself off with an incredulous shake of his head, trying not to laugh. At this point he’s not sure who’s more fucking clueless about dating (probably still him though). “I wanted to look at you” he clarifies.

Ian facepalms himself like a goof, “Oh. Oh, shit. I’m stupid. I thought you actually meant-“

“Nah” Mickey answers, stopping to sit on a rickety outstretch of dock once they find an empty spot to look out over the water, “You’re perfect”.  

He pulls out a half-empty pack of Marlboro’s and offers one to Ian, who takes it gratefully.

Mickey lights his own cigarette and then turns towards Ian while waving him to lean in closer, who presses the tip of his own cigarette against the cherry to light it. Breathing in and then successfully releasing smoke, they both pull away to enjoy their cigarettes quietly, the lake calm and gentle in front of them.

“Beautiful out here man” he comments around his cigarette, and Ian nods his agreement, although he’s mostly looking over towards him. “Can I ask you something?” he asks after a moment, his voice sounding a little uncertain all of a sudden.

It cuts right through the moment and Mickey immediately looks over at him, eyebrows furrowed in some concern at his tone, “Yeah of course”.

Ian hesitates, but manages to get it out while still making eye contact with him. “Are you…are you seeing anybody else?”

Mickey stares back at him. Who the fuck else would he be seeing? Does Ian actually think he’s doing that? Is _Ian_ doing that?

He starts to panic thinking about it, because he had just assumed that like himself, Ian was only interested in focusing on one person at a time. Fuck, there’s no way he can share the redhead with some other fucking-

“Uh…”

“Because I’m not. And I’d kinda like it if you weren’t either” Ian quickly explains as he anxiously fiddles with his hands before taking another deep puff of his cigarette, and then Mickey finally clues in with some relief.

Ian wants to figure out what exactly they’re doing here, and although Mickey hadn’t even figured that out himself yet, it’s not that hard to give him an answer to his actual spoken question.

“Definitely not seeing anyone else man” he reassures him. Fuck, he didn’t even notice other guys lately. And thank God Ian isn’t seeing anyone else either. That would probably drive him insane at this point.

Ian isn’t exactly his yet, but that doesn’t mean he should be with anybody else for fucks sake.

“So are we… dating then?” Ian asks carefully, and Mickey thinks about it for a moment. They were more than just casually seeing each other, but not exactly boyfriends yet either. He wants that at some point, but he doesn’t want to push it too fast either.

Not after the crash and burn with Max.

“Yeah, we’re dating” he agrees, thinking that sounds about right. Ian smiles happily, looking down for a moment before he looks over at him again, and Mickey can read him like an open book when he does that.

Ian gets the same shy and almost innocent look on his face whenever he wants a kiss but feels like he can’t just go for it.

Mickey flicks his cigarette into the water, giving it up an instant for a chance at Ian’s lips. The redhead does the same, leaning over to rest one hand over Mickey’s on the wooden dock’s surface before their mouths meet.

He’s warm, so warm, and Mickey’s head buzzes pleasantly, focusing only on the feeling of Ian’s hand and lips against his own. He’s slowly getting used to actual intimacy (not just fucking) and craving it more now, that feeling that seems to take over his entire body as they kiss and tentatively touch each other’s hands, making that enough even when he wants so much more.

After a few minutes where the only sound Mickey can hear is his and Ian’s own soft breathing, lips coming together and apart, and the lake’s continuous slow rolls against the tethered boats hulls, the redhead pulls away, giving him one last lingering kiss before he leans back to the place where he was sitting before.

Mickey pauses, uncertain of why he stopped, but then Ian says brightly while looking back towards the car, “You want to go get that coffee now? I could really use one”.

 _No, I really just want to make out with you some more_ , he thinks, but he nods instead, following Ian’s lead as he quickly stands up. Frankly, as long as they’re fucking together, he’s pretty happy doing whatever.

“Yeah, sure. Sounds good”.

He scrambles to his feet to match Ian’s long-legged pace as he gets up and heads back towards the parked Echo.


	9. Chapter 9

“We’re taking things slow” Mickey repeats for the umpteenth time, slamming the refrigerator door shut a little harder than necessary. 

An old magnet he made for his dad when he was about four years old and in kindergarten quivers from the impact and falls to the ground, and part of him is tempted to just kick it under the fridge where it belongs, with fucking dust and memories.

But the softer side of him, remembering the day he made it at school, picks it up and puts it back in its place on the old fridge while Mandy frowns at him suspiciously, “How slow is slow?”

“None of your fucking business, that slow” he answers, arching an eyebrow at her warningly. But being a Milkovich, she tends to respond with exactly the attitude she gets in the first place, so she doesn’t back down.

“Like… fooling around? Hand jobs?”

He exhales in annoyance, covering his face with his hand for a second before he drags it away, “We kiss and shit. Make out sometimes”.

“What!” she laughs in disbelief, “Like, nothing? Have you even touched each other over the clothes?”

“Why is it any of your business, creep?” he demands, flushing a bit in embarrassment, because no, they hadn’t. And he wasn’t exactly sure why they hadn’t, but he wasn’t pushing it either.

“Because its fucking unheard of, Mickey. Who the fuck dates in the Southside and does nothing, not even fooling around?”

She might have him there. He can’t come up with a single example in his defense, but he does have something else, “Making out with Ian is not nothing” he argues back. Making out with Ian is better than actually fucking half of the guys he’d been with before him.

“I’m just saying, maybe he doesn’t want to do more. Maybe I read him wrong, and he’s not that into you…I just don’t want you to get hurt again”.

Mickey grinds his teeth together, his sister accidently stepping right on the nerve that had already been tripped a few times the past week. He knew Ian was into him, that much was obvious, but he was a little confused about how Ian always cut their make out sessions short before they actually got anywhere.

“I don’t need to fuck him to get to know him. Maybe you should try it for once” he sneers, not backing down even when he sees obvious hurt flash across his sister’s face.

She gets up from the kitchen table and stalks out of the room, slamming her already cracked bedroom door shut hard and ending the conversation abruptly.

He groans, almost instantly regretting his jab at her for being easy. He really had no right, considering that before Ian he was even less invested in getting to know his lays than she was, other than Max of course.

“I’m just fuckin tired!” he yells out, snapping open a can of beer as he does. Long shifts at the hospital were taking their toll on him, and that’s the closest thing she’ll get to an apology from him today. But maybe she understands, because after a moment of silence she yells back, “I’m just trying to help!”

“Yeah I…I get that” he answers more quietly, and although neither of them get up to actually find each other, they both know they are cool.

He checks his phone for a message from Ian, and although he doesn’t see a text, there’s a snapchat waiting for him. Ian had asked him if he had ‘Snapchat’ a couple days ago, and though Mickey didn’t, he quickly agreed to downloading it when Ian explained to him that it was for exchanging pictures.

He opens the snap and raises an eyebrow, Ian’s standing in front of a bathroom mirror, he assumes in his house, shirtless and flexing with the message, “Gym date? I’ll be there”.

“Fuck sakes” Mickey mutters when it disappears all too soon, but he quickly types back, “See you soon”.

Working out at the gym together might not exactly be a traditional date, but it sure as hell worked for them. He drives straight to T Nation, and sure enough after a quick trip to the lockers he wanders into the gym to find Ian running hard on the treadmill, long legs pounding against the moving strip as sweat trickles down his back, staining his grey t-shirt.

He taps Ian on the shoulder, who’s eyes had been briefly closed, and the redhead immediately grins, taking out his earphones but continuing to run.

“Hey! Wanna do the last ten minutes with me?”

Mickey glances over at the treadmill, and reluctantly gets onto it, starting it at a slow setting before he even tries to match Ian’s pace. “You know, uh, I actually really hate running” he finally admits, Ian looking over at him incredulously.

“Why the fuck did you say you loved it then?”

Mickey’s lips quiver into a smile that gives him away, and Ian blushes even through his already flushed skin, “Fucking smart man”.

Mickey shrugs, “It won’t kill me. Never gonna catch up to you though, fuckin gazelle over there”.

Ian laughs, the sound warm and lilting, it makes Mickey’s spine tingle. “I don’t want you to do anything you don’t want to, just because of me” he says, and even though its light, and just about the running, Mickey nods slowly before he adds, “I don’t want you to either Ian”.

Ian looks a little confused but smiles over at him anyways, “Okay Mickey”.

Ian tells him some funny stories from work while they move onto weights, and then pushups, Mickey finding it difficult to match his level of storytelling considering he doesn’t interact too much with anyone at the hospital.

While doing pushups side by side by with Ian, both of them wordlessly challenging the other to keep up, he completely disregards what Mandy said to him earlier that day.

She just doesn’t know Ian… can’t really blame her for that. There’s no faking what’s between them, and its more than friendship and kissing.

Eventually Ian playfully reaches over to give him shove, ending his push-up streak, and they both laugh as he topples to the carpet.

“You did that because you needed to stop you shit” Mickey grins, and Ian doesn’t even try to deny it as he gets back up, “Yup”.

After a quick (and separate) shower in the changerooms, they come face to face again while they are both shirtless and getting redressed, and Mickey notices Ian’s eyes lingering on his broad chest for a while before he finally averts them.

“You can look” Mickey finds himself blurting, and Ian looks over at him a little wide-eyed, “I was just… you look good”.

Mickey nods, a little amused, and he can barely take his own eyes off of Ian as he drags a shirt on over his head, his abs flexing slightly as he does. “Yeah…you do too. Listen, you uh, want to go chill in my car for a bit before I drive you home?”

It’s a weighted question, one slightly hinting at his own arousal, and he waits with slightly bated breath for Ian to nod in agreeance, “Yeah. Let’s go”.

Mickey drives them around the streets for a bit before parking in a quiet and empty alleyway behind a convenience store, where they actually have some privacy.

Heart thumping in anticipation as he turns the jingling keys in the ignition, his car engine quiets and then silence fills the vehicle for a moment before he turns to Ian, the green eyes facing him looking just as hopeful as he knows his own probably do.

“C’mere” Mickey says softly, and immediately Ian leans over to meet his lips, a now familiar warmth filling his body that flickers like flames as they connect, nervous at first but then growing stronger.

With the warm and soft mouth opening and closing so perfectly against his own, and the firm jaw resting against his hand, its not long before he’s inviting Ian’s tongue in between his lips, the other boy letting out a small and almost indiscernible groan as it enters that makes his entire body spark for a moment.

Ian pulls his lips away for a moment to kiss at his neck, and he barely bites back the gasp that wants to escape without permission from his lips. The car windows are practically steaming up from their still damp bodies and the heat, and he feels like pleasure is crawling over his skin as Ian continues to softly press his lips against his pale neck.

Mickey’s hand leaves Ian’s cheek and jaw, lowering abruptly down to his shoulder to bring him in closer before it slips some more, landing on his chest instead. Ian returns to his mouth then, his eyes closed and forehead creased with want as they both push harder into the continuous kiss.

While Mickey’s hand stays on Ian’s chest, he feels Ian’s land on his own suddenly, fingers spread as they roam across his warm body, eagerly feeling him up.

_Fuck yeah,_ Mickey thinks, his head practically swimming with arousal at this point. _Touch me._

Ian’s other hand drops to his hip, and it takes everything Mickey has not to grind upwards as the hot and slightly sweaty hand then slips up underneath his shirt, sliding across his back desperately while the other grabs against his side.

When Ian’s hot lips move against his throat again with more ardour, Mickey does gasp, and the leading words rush out after it, “I got a condom in my wallet man”.

He regrets it the fucking instant Ian freezes, and then pulls away from him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ?


	10. Chapter 10

Mickey’s blue eyes widen at the loss as Ian quickly pulls away from him, removing both his searching hands and pressing lips from his body that’s practically aching with want at this point.

He almost immediately stutters out his apology as Ian completely returns to his own seat, wondering what the fuck he did wrong. “I, I just meant, that if you wanted to-“

“Yeah, no, it’s just…I gotta get home. Got some paperwork I need to fill out for Crush’s monthly loss reports” Ian quickly says, glancing down at his phone nervously.

With a bit of a sinking feeling, Mickey looks too and doesn’t see any notifications on the screen, but he reaches over to roll his window down anyways so he can clear his head a bit.

He can tell they aren’t getting any further today, and he doesn’t want to upset Ian by saying or doing something stupid while his head is still in an aroused and confused fog. Ian’s hands roaming all over his body had done things to him.

“Okay. I’ll uh…I’ll drive you home” he offers a little awkwardly, waiting for Ian’s small nod before he starts his car again. They drive to Ian’s house on Wallace Street mostly in silence, and Mickey’s heart starts to ache a little in his chest, wondering what the fuck he did to mess it up right before they got to the next step.

He just wants to kick himself by the time he pulls in front of Ian’s house and the quiet redhead immediately climbs out of his car, saying a quick “thanks for the ride” and “talk to you later” before he takes off towards his house like he couldn’t wait to get away.

Mickey doesn’t leave right away. Sitting there in his shitty car and fuming at himself for a while before he finally hits the gas, the tires squeal a bit in protest as he eventually rockets down the street.

He doesn’t ask Mandy for advice when he gets home, but holes up inside his old room instead, pacing, biting his already short nails, and waiting to hear from Ian. But after a few hours of hearing fuck all, he can’t wait any longer.

He’s not big on apologies, he rarely feels he owes them, but in this case he feels its worth making an exception.

_Sent:_ Whatever I did to upset you, I’m sorry. I really didn’t want to fuck this up, and I’m sorry if I did.

_Received:_ ?? You didn’t fuck up anything!

His heart lifts a little in relief as Ian immediately texts him with that reassuring message, but he’s still confused.

_Sent:_ Well then I’m fucking confused because you sure as hell acted like you were upset with me.

_Received:_ Fuck. I’m sorry Mickey. It’s not you.

Jesus Christ. Not this shit again.

_Sent:_ What, are you gonna say its ‘me’ next? Wtf happened

_Received:_ Do you want to come over? I’d rather talk to you in person

It takes a long time for Mickey to get that response, but when he does and reads it, he grabs his car keys and practically runs out of the house to jump back into his Echo.

Pulling up in front of the Gallagher house less than ten minutes later, he jogs up to the front door breathlessly, rapping his knuckles against the door impatiently until Ian finally answers, looking rather embarrassed.

“Hi” he mumbles as he steps out onto the porch. Pulling the front door closed behind himself, he keeps his eyes downcast. “Hi?” Mickey says back, trying not to sound panicked. But he is a little. He’s confused as hell and worried that Ian’s gonna drop some bomb on him like he’s not actually gay or something.

Ian finally looks up before glancing around the porch and asking, his voice a little higher than normal, “Did you eat dinner yet?”

“Huh?” Mickey asks in disbelief. _Is he fucking kidding me right now?_ he wonders.

“Are you hungry?” Ian repeats, and although its clear he’s bluntly trying to avoid the subject now that he’s actually here, Mickey is too stressed out to let it go, “No I’m not fucking- can you please just tell me why you practically ran away from me earlier?”

His voice, much to his own dismay, practically has a note of pleading in it, because he feels like a clueless fucking kid when it comes to this sort of thing. But maybe that’s what it takes, because Ian finally looks at him fully, his face seeming determined to tell him the truth.

“Look, I’m…I’m sorry about acting like a fucking weirdo in your car earlier. It’s not like I don’t want to have sex with you”.

“Well what is it then?” Mickey asks, trying not to sound annoyed. Because he’s not, not really. Frustrated? Sexually yes, but with Ian no. He’s just worried. Worried that after having so many feelings for this guy in such a short amount of time by his standards than its going to be over before it ever even really started.

Ian lets out a hesitant and shaky sigh, his cheeks reddening with flushed embarrassment as he admits in a mumble without really looking up, “I never have before”.

Oh shit.

_Oh shit!_ Ian’s …Ian’s a virgin?

Mickey stares at him, trying to figure out if he’s making a fucking joke at first. If he is, its not very funny. The guy is hot as fuck, built, and eighteen years old. How has he not fucked anyone yet?

But when Ian finally looks up to meet his surprised blue eyes and gauge his reaction to the admission, Mickey quickly searches them back and knows he’s telling the truth. Why the fuck is he so embarrassed though?

“I…I don’t know what to say” he admits, “Like I don’t have a fucking problem with that man, not gonna make you do anything you don’t want to, like I said before. I’m just really fucking surprised to be honest. Have you like…done…you know…”

Ian frowns a little, like he’s offended by the rather blunt and thinly veiled question. “I’m not a complete fucking square or anything. I’ve messed around with guys before, just haven’t had actual sex”.

Mickey leans back a bit. Okay. That explains a lot.

“You nervous or some shit?” he asks gently, and Ian hesitates, that right there telling him most of what he needs to know. But he waits patiently anyways.

Finally the redhead opens up, although its clear he’s still a little reluctant to. “I got some trust issues I guess. I was going to once, but the guy I was seeing tried to force _me_ into being the bottom and it just sort of ruined it for me. He didn’t rape me or anything, but we just pretty much broke up on the spot when I wouldn’t budge”.

“Yeah, I hear that about trust” Mickey laughs without humor, scratching the back of his dark head awkwardly, “And that was a shitty thing for him to do”.

The quiet porch is filled with an uncomfortable silence for a moment where neither of them is sure what to say, and both of them are thinking different things.

Ian breaks first, “I understand if that’s a turn off or whatever, you can just tell me. But it’s not like I’m never gonna do it either, I just need some more time”.

Mickey quickly and adamantly shakes his head, “Not at all, Jesus. Like I said, I’m just surprised. But it’s not a bad thing or whatever” he quickly adds, seeing Ian’s head lower a bit in shame. “And I’m not saying this to try and like, convince you or anything, but I actually usually you know…uh. Catch?”

“Catch?” Ian looks up at him, confused and blank-faced, and its fucking adorable.

“I don’t mind getting fucked. Is what I’m trying to say. But I’d never make you do it if you didn’t want to. I don’t want to ruin what we got either” he clarifies.

“Oh” Ian looks relieved, “And Mickey? I do want to. Just not yet, okay?”

Mickey nods quickly, desperate to feel like things are normal between them again. “You tell me when you are, yeah? Not gonna push you again man. I’m sorry”.

Ian smiles softly, “Don’t be. I should have said something earlier. I just didn’t want you to lose interest because you thought I wouldn’t put out or something”.

“You think I’m that much of an asshole?” Mickey asks, actually unable to keep the frown of his face now. He didn’t get offended too easily, but Jesus Christ if that comment didn’t sting. He really thought he’d been decent to Ian so far, more so than any other guy he had ever pursued in any sort of way.

The redhead’s immediate and strong reaction to the question however quickly reassures him, “No! I don’t at all! But its happened before and… Mickey, I just really like you. I didn’t want to fuck it up so I…I don’t know what I thought I was doing. Dating I’m good at, but sex? You’re just… you’re cute, and you’re funny, and hot and perfect and I just didn’t want to… fuck, I’m rambling now aren’t I? Please just shut me up” Ian practically begs.

You know those cartoons where a character sits there looking like they got hit over the head with a damn baseball bat while fucking hearts float around their head? That. That’s kinda how Mickey feels right now hearing Ian describe him like that. No wonder Ian had gone from cool and confident to being a nervous shit when they reached the next step.

Ian could help him figure out dating and when the time came, he would help Ian figure out sex. It actually sounded sort of perfect.

Without a single word, he leans forward to fulfil Ian’s desperate request, pulling him in by the back of his head, he kisses the redhead until he feels the stress melting away from the boy beneath his lips and fingertips.

Ian smiles against his face before they pull apart and look at each other again, “Do you want to come inside? We’re having a family movie night” he explains.

“What movie?” Mickey asks. Like it fucking matters. He’s definitely going inside.

“Brokeback Mountain”.

“Really?”

Jesus okay, maybe not. That would be fucking awkward.

“No” Ian laughs, “Just fucking with you. Scout’s Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse. It’s funny”.

Ian says the last word hopefully, like he really wants Mickey to come inside, and hell, he does too.

He nods with a small smile, “Yeah, I’ll come in”.

The moment he steps inside the messy Gallagher house, the sense of family and warmness hits him smack in the face, something he’s not quite used to from his own experiences being a born and bred Milkovich. But its actually kind of nice, he admits to himself.

The Gallagher siblings are all spread out over the lumpy couch, the armchairs and the carpeted floor, passing around and munching through two bowls filled with flavored chips. Without pulling their intrigued eyes away from the television screen they shift over to let Mickey and Ian get to the couch.

It's a bit of a tight squeeze and Mickey ends up in the middle, jammed between Gallaghers. Lip is on his right side and he nods over at him as he notices the newcomer, “Hey man, how’s it going?”

“Uh, good” Mickey answers a little awkwardly. He wonders if he’s intruding on their family time, but no one seems annoyed that he’s there. And looking over at Ian in the softly lit living room, he seems as happy as ever again, and completely comfortable. Mickey’s glad he could make him feel that way.

After a while, Ian reaches down to steal a bowl from his younger brother, who lets out a squawk of protest, but Ian lifts the bowl out of his reach and towards his lap before he can grab it back.

“Chips?” he asks, offering the bowl sideways. Mickey watches with amusement as Ian pinches a pile of salt and vinegar chips between his long fingers and shoves them into his mouth.

“You know, for someone who works at a Health store, you sure eat a lot of crap” he teases, taking a couple. Ian grins and whispers, “I like salty stuff”.

Mickey nods and raises an eyebrow before whispering back, “I like em sweet”. He sees goosebumps rise on Ian’s neck as his words with double meaning drift over it, and more than anything he wants to lean over and press his lips to it, but he is literally surrounded by other Gallaghers right now.

Kinda severely limits his options with how to be affectionate, but Ian seems distracted now anyways.

He shifts in his place on the lumpy couch for a moment, looking very torn as he chews on the inside of his cheek and bounces his right leg against the carpet beside his younger brother’s arm.

And then without another word, he grabs Mickey’s hand and leads him off the couch, out of the living room, and up the stairs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wasn't totally sure which direction to take with this one but I thought this might work, hope everyone's ok with it. I thought it might be cute if they were both nervous for slightly different but legitimate reasons :)


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and feedback, I really enjoy reading them :) Rating will be slowly changing from this point on to mature, but not every chapter will be the same

Ian drags Mickey along behind him like they are running some fucking marathon in tandem that he’s not even quite sure he signed up for, and with each step of the carpeted stairs landing beneath his socked feet Mickey feels his heart start to beat a little faster in his chest.

What the hell got into the redhead that had been so shy, so embarrassed, just an hour ago?

His startled blue eyes glance past a tacky wooden sign hanging at the top of the Gallagher stairwell, proclaiming in a font that makes him cringe, “ _Count your blessings_ ”.

Fuck. Maybe he shouldn’t question it.

After they reach the upstairs hallway Ian pushes past a beat-up looking bedroom door outlined in bright black and yellow ** _caution_** tape, and Mickey looks around the insanely crowded bedroom with slightly overwhelmed eyes as Ian finally stops and drops his slightly sweaty hand.

“I thought maybe you’d want to see my room. I share with my brothers” Ian explains, gesturing around slowly at everything adorning the walls and carelessly tossed onto the floor until he flops down onto one of the beds jammed in the left corner of the room.

Laying out across its width, knees bent at the edge, his feet are still touching the floor as he looks up at the ceiling.

“Yeah, I uh, see that” Mickey answers, tentatively walking over towards the bed but hesitating for a moment before he slowly stretches out on his back beside Ian. His feet don’t touch the floor quite as easily.

The mattress beneath his back feels like its probably taken as much of a beating as his own has, he’s had the same one his entire life, but it smells like Ian, and the warm and familiar scent only adds to the rapid beating of his heart.

“I don’t usually get a chance when all of my brothers are out of the room and occupied” Ian continues, resting one hand on his stomach casually, he reaches over with the other one to gently play with Mickey’s black hair.

It’s a slow, actually pretty fucking relaxing sensation, and Mickey blissfully closes his eyes as Ian massages his head a little with one hand, until eventually the bed creaks slightly and he can sense Ian is looming closer to his face.

His blue eyes flutter open and sure enough, Ian is just a few inches away, looking down at his lips and then back up to his eyes.

“Can I kiss you?” he asks.

His tone was low and husky, and Mickey can barely find his own voice as he nods back weakly, “You… can do whatever you want to me”.

Ian’s warm and steady hand finds the side of Mickey’s face as he rests part of his body against his strong chest, and Mickey wonders if Ian can feel how fast his heart is beating beneath his arm as he leans down to kiss him, sparks all by flying.

Slow and steady, Ian’s lips open and close against his almost methodically, while Mickey tries to control himself beneath him and simply match his careful pace. They’ve made out before yeah, and it was difficult enough those times, but now he’s laying on Ian’s freakin bed and the redhead is pressing up against his body.

Ian shifts slightly against him, his pelvis moving to rest against the crotch of his jeans, and Mickey’s entire body stiffens beneath him. He doesn’t want Ian to feel his…Ian is fucking _shifting_ against it repeatedly now, up and down slowly but firmly, and Mickey swallows hard.

“Ian?” he practically croaks, and the redhead who seemed so innocent just an hour before bites his bottom lip, sucking on it gently as he continues to slowly hump against him.

“Ian, your bedroom door is wide fuckin open” he mumbles once his bottom lip is released, but Ian just shakes his head against him, wordlessly telling him it’s fine, not to worry about it. Nobody’s coming upstairs.

Fuck, _fuck_ …Mickey really can’t take this. It’s been too long, he’s too wound up, he likes Ian too much… “Ian, I’m gonna…you gotta stop” he mutters, wanting him to do anything but.

He’s so fucking close now.

“You really want me to?” Ian asks, but as Mickey feels the burn in his belly growing hotter, he finds himself unable to lie, “No” he mumbles, pushing upwards into it. Another minute or two of dry grinding, and he’s not dry anymore, coming in his pants like he’s a fucking teenager in goddamn high school.

Mickey’s cheeks flush a warm red the instant the buzz in his brain and the singular kind of high comes down and he realizes what just happened. _Jesus Christ, he just came in his pants._

Ian slowly lifts off of him, and while Mickey is practically horrified by the dark wet stain in his jeans, Ian seems to be pleased with it.

“That felt really good” he says softly, “Just so you know, I was planning on eventually using my hand, but I thought it was hotter that I didn’t need to”.

“You were gonna jerk me off?” Mickey asks. His head is still spinning, Ian the fucking not so completely innocent virgin putting all his hormones in a confused hyperdrive.

“Next time I will” Ian promises, but Mickey shakes his head, “I don’t want you to think you have to just because-“

“I know I don’t have to. That’s exactly why I want to” Ian says firmly, cutting him off in a tone that tells Mickey he means what he says.

All Mickey can think about though, is that he might end up being Ian’s first at some point. Something he had never wanted to deal with before. Virgins were timid, and confused, and usually pretty fucking shy when it came to actually fucking.

Not really his glass of whiskey. But…then again, Mickey kind of became all those things when he met Ian.

So maybe it makes sense now that he feels a strong want, no a fucking need, to be Ian’s first. But more than that, he just plain wants to be Ian’s.

“I never met anyone like you before” he finally murmurs, feeling Ian’s eyes on him.

“What do you mean?” he asks, sounding almost a little worried.

“You’re…fuck, I don’t know. You’re special Ian. It sounds stupid, I fucking know that, but I can’t think of how else to describe you”.

 _I’ve never wanted someone like I want you before._ He’s struggling, fucking flailing actually, with his words that don’t quite match his thoughts, but the soft and knowing smile on Ian’s handsome face makes him think that maybe he understands exactly what he means.

The redhead almost seems shy again, and he tilts his head a bit as he says quietly, “You’re pretty special too Mickey”.

 _Cute. Special. Funny. Hot. Perfect._ The words Ian had used to describe him over time were sweet like honey coming off his tongue, not an ounce of bullshit in them like Mickey was so used to hearing, that he practically expected it now.

They both sit there in contented silence mulling over their separate thoughts for another moment or two before Mickey can’t ignore the sticky warmth in his jeans any longer, and he awkwardly gets up from Ian’s bed.

“I uh, I’d like to stay and finish the movie but I probably should get going” he explains, gesturing down with one hand towards the wet spot while he avoids making direct eye contact with Ian.

Still can’t believe he did that, Jesus. _Only happened because you didn’t jack off today_ , he tells himself desperately.

“That’s okay” Ian smiles, and the two of them go back down the carpeted stairs, now very much taking their time. Pausing in the homey living room as he pulls his muddy work boots back on, he’s suddenly very glad for the significant lack of lighting in the Gallagher’s mediocre homemade movie theatre.

“I gotta get going, nice seeing you guys” he mumbles, still trying to block the telling stain with his arm, but Fiona turns to look directly at him, her smile bright and friendly, “Aw, well I hope you have a good night. Actually…would you like to come over for dinner tomorrow? My boyfriend Jimmy will be coming by too, it’s just gonna be spaghetti and meatballs but I have some of my friend V’s killer pasta sauce”.

No one else in the living room seems startled by the invitation, but Mickey sure as hell is. They actually want him to come over? Like, get to know him?

What does that mean?

He glances over at Ian uncertainly, who’s leaning against the couch, waiting just as intently as his older sister to hear his answer.

“Uh…yeah. That sounds… good. I’ll see you tomorrow then” he says, giving a small and awkward wave towards Ian directly before he steps out onto the porch and pulls the front door closed behind him.

As soon as the cool night air hits his shaky lungs, he takes a deep breath.

Holy fuck. He sure as hell wasn’t expecting any of that to happen when he came rushing over a couple hours before, thinking Ian was going to cut him lose.

Instead of being told Ian didn’t want to see him anymore, he was reluctantly informed the guy he was dating was actually a virgin, then creamed his own pants like an amateur, and lastly, he had been invited back to dinner with Ian’s family.

Fuck his mind was spinning. He walks slowly down the creaky wooden steps from the porch towards his parked car at the side of the road, but just after he hits the concrete walkway he hears the Gallagher’s front door open and then quick steps behind himself.

He turns around quickly out of instinct, living in this neighborhood you need a shit ton of it, but it’s just Ian standing there, looking breathless.

Mickey pauses, wondering why he had wandered outside after him, but before he has a chance to even ask Ian grabs his hand and leans in to kiss him, firm and full of more affection than he’d ever received in his life.

He kisses the redhead back in surprise, feeling a hand come to rest at the small of his back before they come apart.

Ian smiles, “I just wanted to say goodnight”.

Holy fuck.

That was the best ‘goodnight’ Mickey had ever gotten.

“Goodnight” he says back, ducking his head a little shyly as he makes his way to his Echo, almost wishing the redhead waving goodbye from the walkway would come with him.

-

He slowly gets out of his Echo, shutting the door behind himself and leaning against the car for a moment to collect his thoughts before he actually starts walking towards the dilapidated Milkovich house.

_“Are you alright?”_

“Jesus Christ!” he yelps. It was so fucking dark out, he didn’t even see Mandy sitting outside. But squinting a little towards the front porch now, he can see the cherry of her cigarette glowing.

“Light me one of those” he grumbles, a little annoyed as he hears her soft chuckle while he approaches. Close enough now to throw himself down beside her on the porch and take the second cigarette, he takes a long and deep puff as she nudges him. Hard.

“Ow, the fuck Mandy?”

“You scared me. You went tearing out of the house like your ass was on fire and you weren’t answering your phone” she says, her tone reproachful.

His phone was on silent while he was at Ian’s, but it could have been full out ringing and he probably still wouldn’t have noticed. “Yeah, yeah I’m fine” he answers, waving her concerns away with a casual swipe of his hand, “Was just at Ian’s”.

“Ohhh” she says, nodding her head as she butts out her cigarette before immediately reaching for another one, “He text you that he was home alone or something?”

He can hear the suggestive smirk in her tone and he snorts softly, “No. Not like that. You were wrong by the way though, he is into me”. He can’t help feeling just the slightest bit smug that she was so fucking off in her guess, but maybe its because he’s still on some sort of high from being around Ian.

“Yeah, he’s into you but he won’t fuck you” she laughs, and that actually rubs him the wrong way. He reaches over to shove her, not hard enough to hurt but enough to show his annoyance, “Told you, we’re fucking taking it slow”.

“Can you not agree on who’s taking it up the ass or something?”

Mickey flushes red, once again glad for the darkness. “Will you shut the fuck up? Jesus Christ, lower your goddamn voice”.

“I’m just trying to understand what the fuck is going on. Is he like saving himself for marriage or something?” she jokes. Mickey stills beside her. She’s too fucking close to the truth and he doesn’t know what to do.

Maybe he should have just shoved her again, because she immediately looks over at him in suspicion. “Is he?” she demands.

“No, dipshit. He’s not saving himself he just hasn’t done it yet” he says defensively, “And by the way, that stays between me and you, you fucking hear me? It’s nobody’s business but his”. He growls the last line, feeling very protective over Ian all of a sudden.

She seems peeved that he would even suggest that. “Who the fuck would I tell? I didn’t mean anything by it, it honestly never even crossed my mind til I made the friggin joke”.

“Me neither” he admits, exhaling cigarette smoke from his nose, “I mean, not til he told me. But he apparently thought I’d be like, turned off by it or whatever”.

Mandy snorts, “Does he not understand the male conquest or something? Guess he’s never heard that Islam thinks heaven is filled with ‘em”.

“Virgins? The fuck?” Mickey frowns. Again, what was the world’s fucking fascination with them?

He then quickly shakes his head, determined to focus on what’s important. “It’s not a fucking conquest. Like yeah, I wanna be his first, but it’s not about that. It never was with him”.

And the more he thinks about it that night… the more he realizes it’s true.

From the first time he saw Ian Gallagher, there was more he wanted from that fucking smile and those perfect eyes, than he’d ever wanted from anyone else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you have any requests for these two in terms of getting to know each other or dates, feel free drop them in the comments and I'll see what I can do <3 In terms of Ian's virginity, he's still not gonna be losing that just yet :P


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey I'm sorry for the delay in uploads for both this fic and especially my other if you are following that one too, I'm swamped with work and also have been pretty sick. So I feel like my writing kind of sucks right now...but I hope you enjoy this little update anyways <3

Before he gets out of the Echo parked on the slightly windy street outside of the Gallagher house, Mickey yanks down the sun visor in front of his seat to double check his appearance in the handy little mirror.

Rubbing off a grey smudge of who-the-fuck-knows-what from his pale cheekbone with an impatient curse as he checks his still minty breath simultaneously, he reluctantly realizes this is probably as good as he’s gonna get.

Besides, they _have_ all seen him already, so even though he did try today to put in an actual fucking effort to look nice, the pressure shouldn’t really be on for him to make a good impression.

So if you asked him why he was dressed in a cleanly ironed Navy-blue Henley paired with newer dark jeans, and arriving with a fresh Italian herb baguette from the bakery down on Winchester tucked underneath his arm, well, he wouldn’t exactly know what to tell you.

Most likely, “fuck off, it’s none of your damn business. And I’ll break your kneecaps if you ask again”.

He’s nervous, okay?

Mickey hates knowing that about himself, and he hated the way Mandy teased him mercilessly about it too before he left the Milkovich house today. Because Mickey Milkovich was not used to being nervous, about anything.

But he wasn’t going to show up like some fuckin bum today either, he was far past pretending like he didn’t care about winning Ian Gallagher over.

He raps his knuckles against the front door, so used to seeing the words FUCK tattooed across them that he barely even registers them anymore. He’s hoping Ian will answer the door, but of course, he has no such fucking luck.

Instead, a slightly bratty looking kid is standing there and chewing gum obnoxiously, maybe nine or ten, Mickey guesses. He saw the kid before, quickly remembers his name is Carl.

“Uh, hi” he says awkwardly. Carl stares at him, his eyes shifting from Mickey to the bread and then back again without comment.

“Is Ian here?” Mickey adds a little more firmly, wishing the kid would just move the fuck over and let him in already.

Carl does step aside to let him inside without answering, but as soon as Mickey kicks off his boots by the front door he’s immediately informed, “He’s out getting parmesan. Fiona forgot it and made him run to the store”.

Fuck. “Should I come back?” he asks hopefully, but Fiona comes hurrying over from the kitchen at the sound of the passive exchange and shakes her head at him, denying his escape. “No, no. Don’t be silly. He’ll back soon, come on in”.

Mickey nods, feeling very much out of place as he reluctantly enters their living room, momentarily distracted by the kid’s program flashing across the tv screen.

“I brought this” he suddenly remembers, thrusting the baguette at her, “Thanks for inviting me”.

“Oh” she seems surprised by the gesture but takes the bread happily, “Thanks”.

Just because he didn’t usually subscribe to social etiquette, didn’t mean he wasn’t aware of it.

“Hey, you must be Mickey. Ian told me about you”.

Mickey’s dark head then turns towards the new voice coming down the stairs, finding it belongs to a guy that (in his opinion) looks like a total fucking pussy. He nods in response and the guy continues talking, “I’m Fiona’s boyfriend, Jimmy”.

“Right”.

She could do better. Of course, he doesn’t say that, just bites his bottom lip and nods again.

The moment of silence that follows is awkward as hell, and Mickey is just about considering bailing on the whole dinner with the family thing when the front door opens and Ian comes inside, swinging a small plastic bag containing the precious parmesan he had been sent to get.

He notices Mickey standing there immediately, “Hey! Sorry, I thought I’d be back before you got here” the redhead says cheerfully, but just like that, Mickey doesn’t give a fuck about any of the previous awkwardness, he’s just glad he’s here with Ian.

“S’alright” he mumbles nonchalantly.

He automatically tags along after Ian into the kitchen, who drops the parmesan down besides the plates Fiona is busy filling up with pasta, meatballs, and ‘V’s Killer Tomato Sauce’. “Great, was starting to think you got lost!” she teases her younger brother, licking a splash of errant sauce from her finger as she finishes loading them up and grabs two finished plates for the table.

“DINNER!” she hollers, and just like that, more people are flooding into the kitchen, hungry and eager for plates filled with warm food.

Mickey vaguely feels like he is caught in the middle of the storm of a hungry Gallagher brood, but before he knows it he is lead to a reserved place at the table beside Ian, who leans sideways to give him a short but sweet kiss on the cheek as they settle into their places along with everyone else.

Mickey feels both his cheeks reddening in response, but no one at the table really seems to notice. Even after Ian’s lips are long gone, he swears he can feel the tingle of where they were.

Wiping off his sweaty and still slightly nervous palms on the knees of his jeans, he then grabs his fork and starts in on the simple dinner with everyone else, and for most of the meal it seems like he is getting away with not being the centre of attention.

He listens to their happy and boisterous chatter, dipping a slice of the baguette he brought into V’s sauce which is indeed killer, and working through what he is pleased to find are homemade meatballs.

But then Fiona wipes her mouth off on a napkin when their plates are all close to empty, and turns to him, asking in a bright voice, “So Mickey, Ian tells us you are living with your sister right now, not far from here. And you work at the South General Hospital?”

“Uh” he glances around the table at the mildly curious faces surrounding him and nods, “Yeah, I do. Janitorial mostly” he admits a little reluctantly, although he figured Ian already mentioned that part too.

He’s relieved to see no snooty or judgemental looks appear, figuring that like himself, a family like this values any type of labor as long as it puts money into their pockets to keep them going.

“Hey, my dad works there too. Do you know Dr. Lishman?” Jimmy asks, acting all chipper and friendly towards him again. Mickey shrugs in confusion, “Don’t really talk to the doctors all that much. I’m sure I’ve cleaned up after his ass before though”.

“And you met Ian at his work right?” Ian’s older brother Lip asks, and Mickey unconsciously starts to frown a little, not loving being interviewed like this with everyone staring at him. He was here, he liked Ian, what else was there to it?

He just nods in response to that second question, but then Carl, the kid from before, at least has the balls to cut right to the chase, “What are your intentions with our brother?” he asks, his voice low and almost daunting, but there’s a tone of seriousness in there too.

Mickey’s cheeks redden again at the insinuation and Ian drops his fork in mild annoyance, “Guys! Seriously? Leave him alone, let him eat, Jesus”.

But even as he says that in defense of his dark-haired guest, he glances sideways a little bit, something Mickey doesn’t miss.

He clears his throat a little, knowing its best if he gets it out now. Though he’s not exactly sure what to say at first. “Dunno what you mean by intentions exactly, but I guess I intend on…” he looks over at Ian, at the innocent and soft smile on his face as he waits to see what he has to say, and the realization hits him, “…on making him happy”.

His genuine answer seems to satisfy the pestering Gallaghers, and after dinner, Jimmy pulls him aside while he’s slowly working through his second beer as they all watch a rerun of a Cubs game on Tv.

“Hey man, just wanted to say I get how you’re feeling. I got all the same shit from them when I first started dating Fiona, but it’s just because they really care. Dating a Gallagher should come with a warning label, you’re actually dating all of them, that’s how close they are”.

Disliking the ‘well-meaning’ hand on his shoulder but letting it slide, Mickey frowns slightly as he takes another drink of his beer, “That’s how family is supposed to be”.

Supposed to be. Not that it was always the case, take his own fucked up family for example, but at least Ian had some sort of support system. He deserved that.

“Well, I guess I wouldn’t know that” Jimmy laughs, shrugging innocently before he heads back to Fiona’s side, perching on the armrest of the sagging couch.

“Neither would I” Mickey admits quietly, mostly to himself though. The only exception to that rule he had is Mandy, because even though his sister literally drives him nuts sometimes, he does love her. And he knows she loves him too.

Ian turns around to look at him then, because there hadn’t been enough room for everyone to sit on the crowded couch and frankly he was more content to stand with his beer than be squished between Gallagher siblings anyways, and asks, “Feel like going for a walk?”

 _A walk_ …Mickey generally prefers drives but sure, why the hell not? He nods, setting his empty beer bottle down on an end table as Ian gets up and pulls his sneakers on, waiting for Mickey to get his own outerwear on before they head outside together into the crisp night air on Wallace Street.

Warm and affectionate fingers loop through his own once they reach the walkway, and Mickey feels a gentle warmth growing in his stomach in response.

It was funny how something simple like that, just holding hands even, could make him feel so strong and so weak at the same time.

He just becomes more aware of everything when Ian is by his side like this. Like his brain wants to remember every minute detail so he can hold onto it forever. The way the crisp night air feels filling his lungs, the way the hard concrete feels beneath his boots, the sound of Ian walking steadily beside him, the warm hand in his own.

Ian finally breaks the silence as Mickey mulls over these sensations, saying rather sincerely, “Thanks for coming out tonight, I know us Gallagher can be a lot”.

Mickey looks over at him in mock disbelief, “I got a free dinner and I got to see you. What are you thanking me for?”

Ian laughs, butting his shoulder against Mickey’s own playfully, “Alright, alright. And I’m not sure if you care or not, but I think my family is starting to like you. You’re just yourself around them, you don’t try and bullshit or pretend to be something you aren’t just because they’re around. And it’s pretty fucking refreshing actually”.

“I…I do care” Mickey admits a little quietly.

He wasn’t even himself 100% sure why. Initially he thought the only thing that mattered was Ian wanting him back, liking him back, but there was more to it now. More than moments, and days. He wanted to be a part of Ian’s life, and all that came with it.

“Okay, well in that case…maybe its too soon to ask this, I don’t know, but I’ve been wanting to. Not just today, but for a while” Ian says a little nervously, and Mickey’s heart beats a little harder in his chest, looking over at the redhead and knowing, hoping for, what he thinks he’s going to say.

Because he wants it too.

Fuck, he wants it too.

Ian’s words come spilling out quickly, unrehearsed but earnest, “Mickey, will you…do you want to, be my boyfriend?”

Mickey lets out the air he’d been nervously holding in his lungs without realizing it, a happy and uncontrollable grin forming on his face as soon as he hears the redhead’s tentative words.

He looks up at the starry and dark sky for just a brief moment before he turns to nod his agreement, adding a little more emphatically as he sees Ian waiting for an actual answer, “Yeah, I want to be your fuckin boyfriend”.

They both can’t help but laugh a little in relief and Ian finally admits, still holding his hand this entire time, “I was a little worried you’d say no, or that you weren’t sure…because we haven’t really, you know, done anything yet”.

Mickey shakes his head, there wasn't a whole lot in this fucked up world he was sure of but, “If there’s anything I’m sure of, Ian, its that I want to be with you”.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I keep getting sick, yay Canadian weather!

It took Mickey all of a few hours to realize on his own that he didn’t even know exactly what being Ian’s boyfriend meant.

They wouldn’t see other people, sure, but they were already in solid agreement about that before the word ‘boyfriend’ was ever even attached to anything. Not to mention they had already done a whole lot more together in less than a month (not sexually, but in every other sense) than him and Max ever did in more than six fucking months of being ‘together’.

Whatever the hell that meant.

So maybe he didn’t really understand what the mysterious word meant at first for the two of them, clueless as he was with this shit. But what he _did_ know, was that he was Ian’s, and Ian was his.

It cut all the unnecessary bullshit out, being boyfriends. Left him no reason to feel self conscious about wanting to see Ian so much and making excuses like he used to just to show up at Crush in hopes that he might see the attractive redhead.

It also made him realize that he had affection for someone he actually felt the want to show, regardless of what anyone thought.

And maybe that’s the best part of it all he realizes, that he can finally show Ian how he feels about him, even if it still makes him a little goddamn nervous sometimes.

“Goodnight Ian”.

He kisses the tall redhead slowly, letting his needy lips linger on Ian’s warmer ones before he reluctantly pulls away to leave the store and head towards his own job, evening shift at the South Side General Hospital starting in half an hour.

Ian leans back over from the front counter at Crush, a slightly dazed smile still on his face as he waves goodbye gently, “See you tomorrow Mick”.

“See you tomorrow”.

 

_-The Next Day-_

 Mickey finally wakes up to his phone’s loud and insistent  _pings,_ realizing the instant he comes to that he's sick.

 _Received:_ Can't wait to see you later tonight, I'll bring dessert...

 _Received:_  I just realized that sounded kind of dirty. Brownies. I'm bringing brownies ;)

 _Received:_  Hellooo...shit, I'm already being that annoying boyfriend aren't I? :(

 _God,_ even the sound of his phone going off is making his skull ache like someone's swinging fucking nunchucks around in there, not to mention that his throat is dry and scratchy as hell, and he’s completely stuffed up.

Weakly, he reaches across his bed for his phone to see a handful of missed messages from Ian. Frowning as he reads the last slightly sad text, he quickly types back a reassuring response, and is relieved to find Ian is still at his phone and not off sulking somewhere.

 _Sent:_ Not annoying at all. I'm sick though man :( think we could reschedule?

 _Received:_ Yeah of course. Hope you feel better soon  <3

 _Sent_ : <3

 

Yes he typed back a heart emoji. Probably for the first time in his goddamn life but something in the back of his mind tells him it won’t be the last.

Putting his iPhone down with a sigh, Mickey snorts loudly to clear his stuffed nose before he flops back down onto his bed. He feels like absolute shit, but he's still kind of disappointed about cancelling his date with Ian. He had promised the redhead he would cook for him tonight, and was actually looking forward to having an audience for his meals besides Mandy, who frankly didn't fucking appreciate how often he cooked actual homemade meals.

Without him temporarily living in the Milkovich house again, she'd go right back to eating take out and frozen Swanson meals, guaranteed. 

He's about to text her and tell her that she doesn't need to fuck off tonight after all, but decides that fuck it, he could still use the peace and quiet. She doesn't need to know his plans got cancelled. Instead, he gets up just to take a lazy piss and swallow an extra strength Advil before he rolls into a more comfortable position in his bed, and falls back into a much-needed sleep. 

He's awoken, disgruntled and confused a few hours later by a gentle knocking at his closed bedroom door.

A little surprised because his sister actually never fucking knocks, bitch is apparently incapable of doing so, he sneezes before he yells out, "What?" in annoyance. 

The bedroom door creaks open slowly, and as soon as he sees the flash of familiar red hair before Ian even walks into the room sporting a sheepish expression, his mood changes.

“Oh, shit. I thought you were my sister” he says, embarrassed and pulling his bed sheet up a little closer over his body. He didn’t shower today, and his room is a fucking mess. Not to mention the new collection of used Kleenexes tossed onto the floor beside his bed.

Thank God he’s obviously stuffed up, or he’d probably look like an insatiable pervert.

“Nope” Ian says with a grin, his cheeks a little flushed from the walk over, “Just me”. He’s holding a covered metal pot in his hands, complete with padded holders, and Mickey finally gestures towards it in confusion, “Uh…”

“I hope its okay that I came over” Ian says hastily, “I thought maybe you’d like some home-made soup since you’re not feeling well”.

Mickey stares at him.

“You… made me soup?” he asks, his voice sounding strange and muffled from the illness, but also a little from disbelief. Jesus, he can’t remember the last time anyone did anything for him when he was sick.

“Yeah” Ian says breathlessly, lifting the pot a little. “I mean, I can’t really cook for shit to be honest, but my sister Debbie can, and she showed me how to make chicken noodle. It’s got carrots, celery, egg noodles. I tasted it before I came over, it’s really good”.

There’s a long moment of silence before Ian speaks again to fill it, “So…I hope that’s okay”.

Mickey quickly clears his scratchy throat, trying to gather his swimming thoughts into coherent words that make sense, “It’s more than okay Ian I’m just…surprised that you did. Thanks”.

Ian nods, “You sound really stuffed up. Can I go heat you up some? Your sister is in the kitchen, she let me in by the way. I like her, she’s funny”.

Mickey tries not to groan at the mention of Mandy, he can only imagine what she said to Ian when he showed up with a pot of homemade soup for him.  

“Yeah, sure” he says, coughing a bit again as Ian clears out of his room. As soon as the door slowly closes on its own behind his well-meaning boyfriend, he jumps out of his messy bed, ignoring his achy complaining muscles, and tries to quickly clean up his room a bit.

Just the bare essentials really, throw the dirty Kleenex into an empty plastic bag, lump all the dirty laundry together, jam some things back into drawers so he doesn’t look like a total slob.

He’s neatly back in bed by the time Ian returns with his soup, a grinning but suspicious Mandy following him in closely. “Faker” she teases, sticking her tongue at him.

He flips her off, narrowing his eyes towards her, and he would cough in her direction just to spite her but he doesn’t want to get Ian sick.

Ian puts the sloshing bowl down and touches his forehead, “He has a fever” he informs Mandy, who just laughs.

“Ian, you’re a sweetheart”.

The redhead blushes but holds the bowl for Mickey until he sits up and takes it for himself. Before he eats any though, he glares at his sister, wondering why the fuck she’s still in his room. “Can I fucking help you?”

“I just wanted to ask if I could borrow your shitty car, assface”.

 _Yeah, and gawk at me and my boyfriend._ _Go get your own,_ he thinks.

“Whatever, just get out of my room” he sniffs, taking a spoonful of the soup as soon as she disappears. Ian continues to sit on the edge of his bed, watching him to gauge if he likes it but also trying to act like he isn’t.

Mickey swallows, the hot soup travelling down his sore throat nicely. “It’s really good, thanks man” he says, quickly taking some more.

Ian practically beams at him, “I brought a DVD for us to watch too” he says, finally glancing around Mickey’s old room and taking it all in. Mickey hopes he remembers that this is the house he grew up in, not necessarily how he’d decorate now, and that he has his own apartment.

It’s not far off, but he’d gone for a little less of an ‘I’m angry at the world’ vibe at twenty than he did at seventeen.

“Ian, its really uh…nice for you to do this, but I don’t want to get you fuckin sick” he says honestly, even now trying to keep his distance a bit.

Ian waves away his concerns, getting up from his bed to investigate his room a little bit. “Well it’s too fucking late anyways. I kissed you yesterday at work, so if I’m going to get sick, its probably already happening. Where’s your remote?”

And just like that, Mickey’s pointing it out, and wondering how exactly he ended up with a boyfriend that cared so much about him. And then deciding, he probably just shouldn’t question it.

He tiredly rearranges his flat and yet lumpy pillows a bit against the wall of his bed, continuing to eat his soup while Ian pops in the DVD and sets up ‘War of the Worlds’ on his boxy television set that he’d left behind when he moved out.

Sure as hell didn’t miss that shitty screen.

Ian joins him in his bed, wordlessly passing him a box of Kleenex when he begins to sneeze again, and then Ian gently leans up against his shoulder, turning his head to kiss the side of Mickey’s warm forehead.

Even beneath the head cold that’s making his mind foggy and sort of slow, Mickey smiles. It just feels good having Ian here with him, warm and solid.

“If you thought a friggin cold could keep me away, you were wrong” Ian says firmly, although there’s a bit of a teasing tone to his voice, and Mickey shoves him a little, “Well if you think I’m gonna make any effort not to fucking sneeze on you, you’re wrong” he jokes back, even as he grabs another tissue to snort into.

Fuck he feels gross. He’s sure he looks gross. But Ian’s still looking at him with shining eyes.

“You know Gallagher, you must be a little fucked up, wanting to spend your day here with my sick ass” he says, with a laugh that turns into a coughing fit.

“Hmm, spend my day with my hot boyfriend who’s sick and needs me, or spend my day alone, worrying about said hot boyfriend” Ian says, tapping his chin with a finger thoughtfully, “Pretty fuckin easy choice”.

“I’m not dying Ian” Mickey says automatically, so used to fending for himself without any help from anyone that it feels strange to hear he needs someone, but when he sees Ian’s face fall a bit he quickly snaps out of it and adds, “But I uh, I’m glad you’re here. I feel better already”.

“Good”. Ian leans in to kiss him enthusiastically, but Mickey has to pull away much sooner than he’d like to, unable to breathe properly through his stuffed nose.

After the movie, during which Mickey fell asleep twice and snored ‘obnoxiously loudly’ according to Ian, “my fuckin nose is plugged” he had argued back defensively, Ian gets up from the bed, giving him a kiss and a promise that he’ll be back tomorrow.

“If you want me to come over of course” he adds politely but Mickey just rolls his eyes, “Gallagher, please do us both a favor and just come back tomorrow. If you feel like making some more of that soup, that would be okay too”.

Ian laughs, smiling at him once more from behind the bedroom door before he disappears outside of it.

And almost as soon as he is gone, Mandy is there, raising an eyebrow at him.

“What?” he sniffs in annoyance, already missing Ian’s highly superior company.

“Awfully nice of a guy you’re seeing to make you homemade soup just because you have a cold” she says, amusement lilting her tone. He glares at her, knowing exactly what she’s getting at. This is exactly why he had avoided telling her in the first place.

“Is it?” he asks dumbly, pretending he doesn’t know what she’s getting at.

“I already asked him, just so you know. Your boyfriend, I mean” she says, her shit eating grin growing wider.

He doesn’t say anything, just closes his mouth firmly as he stares back at her from his bed. “Assface! Why didn’t you tell me?” she half complains, stopping herself from flopping onto his bed once he coughs again.

He waves his tattooed hand through his bout of coughing, “This” he answers, “You”.

“Mickey, do you even know what you’re getting yourself into? Dating Max…wasn’t really dating. You get that right? You need to be a real boyfriend now. One that opens doors, and texts every night and every morning, always lets him know what you’re doing”.

Mickey finally manages to laugh, “Mandy, you’re missing the fucking point. I don’t gotta do any of that stuff with Ian. He just lets me be myself and yeah sometimes that includes those things but not every single moment of the day. He’s...he’s different”.

His voice gets softer when he says that last part, compliments hidden in the vagueness of the word.

“I like him” she agrees, “And he’s nothing like Max, I’ll give you that. But I have to say I’m a little jealous…he makes you soup and stuff when you’re sick? God, the most a guy has ever done for _me_ is buy me birth control so I didn’t get knocked up while we were banging”.

Mickey puts a hand to his forehead, using the other to gently push her away from his bedside.

“First of all, shut the fuck up, no one wants to hear that shit. Second of all, yeah…I know. Trust me, I didn’t think I’d get this lucky either”.

Lucky. Exactly what he is.

 


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *This chapter is rated mature. Or maybe explicit. Idk, you decide* 
> 
> Hope you enjoy the update, thanks to everyone still following along with this, love the feedback I get! :)  
> The texts used to be images and worked better story-wise but they weren't appearing for everyone so I'm sorry if they don't work as well this way :(

Mickey, still feeling a little sick but at least a dozen times better than the day before, smiles like a helpless fucking goon at his phone screen from the well blanketed place he is still lounging in his bed as he saves the picture of Ian to his camera roll Ian had sent him. With his tongue lolling out and his eyebrows scrunched, Ian had added the caption, "Karen took this at lunch" with the purple devil emoji beside it. 

He actually called in sick for his shift the night before at the hospital, which probably made a huge difference in how well he felt today, but he was kinda thinking now that he should be milking this cold for all it was fucking worth, considering how amazing Ian was to him the day before.

Well okay, Ian was always amazing. But so what if for once in Mickey’s life he wanted someone to make a fuss over him? Didn’t make him a goddamn pussy.

Besides, Ian seemed to _like_ bringing him soup and shit the day before. He didn’t need to deprive his new boyfriend of those simply pleasures in life.

Ian had also texted along "Interpol-untitled. Youtube it".  Mickey coughs a bit again as he pulls up the YouTube app on his phone, unsure of what exactly Ian was telling him to watch.

It’s not until he clicks on the video tab that he realizes it’s a song, sort of a low-key rock band, but the deep tones make his heart beat a little faster as he realizes Ian sent him what he thinks might be some kind of love song.

Not that words say anything about ‘love’ exactly, in fact, the lyrics are pretty damn repetitive about surprising someone and coming around when they’re “down”. Which in his case he figures means sick.

But it sort of _feels_ like a moody love song, and he doesn’t actually hate it either. Maybe that’s just because Ian sent it to him, because he never thought of himself as a sappy shit, but whatever.

He unhooks his charging PlayStation controller and lazily plays GTA V from his bed until he hears the front doorbell ring a couple hours later. He throws the controller away from himself, laying back down in his bed and hollering for Mandy to get the door.

Sure enough, he hears a knock at his bedroom door a few minutes later, sounding a little more confident this time than it had been yesterday.

“Who is it?” he calls out sort of playfully, and he hears a muffled laugh before he gets the answer from behind the door.

“The purple devil”.

“Get in here dumbass” Mickey laughs, unable to control his amusement as Ian comes into his room with a grin that makes his entire damn day.

“Oh you look so much better today” Ian says, sounding relieved as he looks over at him, “Look, I came right from work so I couldn’t make you soup again. Sorry. But I brought you a tea instead”.

Mickey glances towards the Teavana cup in Ian’s hand and makes a face like he’s actually disappointed, “Ian, you set the bar really high yesterday. Come on now, did you at least grow the fuckin tea leaves?

“I know I know. And I’m still a trial basis boyfriend dammit, I really need to step it up” Ian jokes back, rolling his eyes and laughing at Mickey’s playfully raised eyebrows.

“Mm, nothing trial about it” Mickey answers happily, reaching out for the cup, “And thanks. Never had someone take as good care of me as you do”.

Ian looks surprised, and then sort of touched. “Really?”

“Really” Mickey confirms.

The redhead drops his backpack to the floor with a thump and then waves his hand in a shooing motion, “Move over. I’m cold, its rainy and nasty out today”.

Mickey immediately puts the tea down and shifts in his bed sideways to make room for the gangly man he’s lucky enough to call his boyfriend now, holding the sheets and comforter upwards so he can slide right in.

But before Ian climbs into his bed, he unbuttons his slightly damp long-sleeve shirt, taking it off and dropping it to the floor on top of his backpack. He’s still wearing a thin white t-shirt, but Mickey feels his heart race just from the act of seeing him get undressed a little, and he quickly distracts himself by staring at the end of the bed so he doesn’t get a chub as Ian slides into the bed next to him.

Shivering a little dramatically, Ian pulls the covers back up to the middle of their chests before turning sideways away from him, leaving Mickey sitting there like a confused idiot.

Uh, what is he supposed to do here? He got in his bed just to turn away from him?

Ian looks back over his shoulder, ginger eyebrows coming together in concern, “You don’t like cuddling?”

“I…”

Mickey doesn’t fucking know if he likes cuddling. He tries to remember if he ever has. Maybe with his mum before she took off?

The only times he remembers for sure is when he was five or six and would try to force the family cat into accepting his childish hugs, even though the little shit would tear his arms to pieces every time.

Maybe sensing his boyfriend’s confusion, Ian reaches back behind himself wordlessly for Mickey’s arm. Bringing it over his side and then letting it rest across his chest, Mickey can feel Ian’s heartbeat as he automatically shifts closer to him, resting his stomach against Ian’s back.

So warm. So soft.

Rearranging his head into one of Mickey’s pillows, Ian lets out a contented sigh, warming up nicely underneath the covers with an almost bewildered Mickey, who is realizing very fast that he does like “cuddling”. He really fucking likes it.

He settles in against the curves of Ian’s body, and suddenly it feels like that form, that shape, was always supposed to be there against him. Around him. Breathing in deeply, he inhales the scent of Ian and his day, and a warm feeling settles in his stomach while Ian casually flips through his phone, checking up on his missed emails from the day.

Mickey’s arms feel like they are locked around the other boy in the gentlest way possible, but then Ian turns his head slightly to smile at him and Mickey feels his heart melt a little more. What the fuck was this dude doing to him?

“Did you like that song I sent you today?” Ian asks softly, and Mickey immediately nods, still a little speechless.

Ian smiles again and pulls up the music app on his own phone, pressing play on the song he had sent to him earlier that day.

“It made me think of you for some reason. I guess I didn’t surprise you, but I did come around”.

He turns and looks right into Mickey’s blue eyes, and Mickey swallows hard as the song continues to play, unsure of how to voice how he’s feeling right now. It’s a little unfamiliar to him, like most things in this…relationship.

“No... Ian, you did. You did surprise me”.

He’s not talking about today. Not in the slightest.

Ian knows exactly what he means.

The redhead, turning his head in just a slightly awkward way so he can reach him, closes his eyes and leans in, Mickey closing the rest of the gap as their lips meet, and from the get go, the kiss is heavy, filled with a tentative want.

He can feel Ian’s mouth open just slightly against his in obvious invitation, and he readjusts his hand to cradle the back of Ian’s head firmly as he presses his tongue in against Ian’s, the hot wetness of his boyfriend’s mouth sending a jolt down his spine that doesn’t stop travelling there.

He feels it flooding through his entire body as they make out, Ian soon turning roughly in his arms to face him so they can kiss harder, eyes still closed tightly, and Ian’s large hands spread and travelling down his chest.

Mickey knows there’s no fucking way Ian missed his partial hard on while he was pressed up against his ass spooning before, and his boyfriend’s fucking hands moving steadily southward towards said hard on are doing very little to help that now.

All he does though is stay rather still, except for his head and mouth of course. He licks into Ian’s mouth and against his tongue slowly and anxiously, trying to keep his cool while fingers crawl towards the waistband of his black sweatpants and dance along the elastic, and he shudders a little from want, every nerve cell in his skin tingling as Ian’s hand flattens and begins to dip inside his pants, fingers slowly running over his dark pubic hair first.

And then Ian’s hand, slightly sweaty now but still laying flat, runs down his entire length, his tongue pausing its work for a moment as the redhead finally shudders too from the feel of it, before quickly wrapping his hand around the base of Mickey’s cock.

Mickey lets out an involuntary gasp at the first stroke that only seems to spur Ian’s determination on, as he dips his head down to rest it against Mickey’s shoulder while his bicep flexes and he strokes him more firmly, in repetitive and even strokes that feel so fucking good his mouth stays open the entire time, even though his eyes keep shutting.

There’s not a word from either of them, and though the first song Ian’s put on is long past, another in the list ones plays at a beat that builds with Mickey’s own, blood and music throbbing in his eardrums as he eventually twitches in Ian’s hand before shooting hot streams that end up half on Ian, half in the slightly tangled bedsheets.

Ian’s hand stays wrapped around his cock for another moment or so before he slowly he takes it away, and then Mickey bites his lip and Ian opens his eyes and looks at him, his pupils two dark pools set in beautiful green eyes that are practically begging.

Glancing down, Mickey sees the bulge pressing against Ian’s jeans and he leans in to start kissing him again, Ian diving back into to the making out desperately. After another few moments Mickey starts to creep his hand down against Ian’s chest, sliding it over the button of Ian’s jeans once or twice before he breathes out, “Can I?”

Ian freezes for a second, and then nods his head eagerly, eyes closing as he dives for his boyfriend’s warm mouth again.

Mickey deftly undoes the button on his boyfriend’s jeans, tugging them out of the way just enough to reach his hand inside Ian’s boxers, freeing his boyfriend’s hard on out from its material confines.

Mickey’s not surprised by the size, he felt it was substantial when Ian was grinding against his own back at the Gallagher house that night, but he feels his throat tighten a bit anyways. Dude’s got a solid inch or two on him, and he can only imagine what that could feel like inside himself eventually.

He grips his hand around Ian’s cock and works it just as firmly as Ian did him, the amount of Ian’s precum slicking against his hand indicating he’s already close to finishing just from excitement.

“That feel good?” he mutters under his breath as he strokes his boyfriend, bicep flexing with each slide, and Ian can’t even answer with words, just nods again, his face feeling hot and flush while its pressed against Mickey’s own.

“Ohhh Mickey” he finally groans, and Mickey feels the wetness spread down over his hand, but he keeps pumping until Ian’s absolutely finished.

They finally pull back then just enough to look at each other, both spent but absolutely gone on each other anyways.

They hold each other’s gaze until Ian breaks it for a kiss, “That was incredible” he murmurs, and Mickey nods in agreement. The only hand job that even compares to that one is the first he ever fucking got, and he practically feels stoned now from the endorphins rushing through his brain.

How did he get so lucky to have this man climb so willing into his bed, his life?

“I like you so much Ian” he says quietly, and Ian smiles, nudging his head down against the pillow again as he looks up at him through happy green eyes.

“I like you even more”.

 


	15. Chapter 15

“I personally don’t think its fair that you’re kicking me out of my own freaking house, especially at dinner time, just so ya know” Mandy gripes, pushing past her frazzled older brother to grab a half empty box of Cheese Nips from the counter top, “I’m hungry too”.

Mickey pinches the bridge of his pale nose for a second, seriously about to lose his shit on his clueless sister. She was supposed to leave half a fucking hour ago.

“I personally don’t give a fuck” he answers, dark eyebrows rising sharply towards her, “I told you way ahead of time you needed to clear out”.

She shrugs nonchalantly, “I thought you were kidding”.

“Why the fuck would I joke about this?” Mickey demands, opening the oven door to peek inside again at the carefully stuffed cheese and prosciutto chicken breasts he’s baking. Mandy’s yapping had him putting them in later than he meant to, and now he doesn’t remember how much longer they are supposed to be in for.

“You’re sweating” she comments calmly as he comes back up, smirking as Mickey immediately glances down at his armpits in alarm.

_Jesus Christ._

“Fuck off and go!” he yells, unbuttoning his shirt damn with perspiration and hurrying to his bedroom to change into a new one. Fuck sakes he was getting wound up for this date and his sister wasn’t helping in the slightest.

He was finally completely over his annoying head cold, and tonight was the night him and Ian had rescheduled their date to.

After bringing up multiple times that he was going to cook something nice, in an attempt to impress his new boyfriend, he figured Ian would have high expectations for tonight. So inadvertently, he sort of shot himself in the fucking foot with this one.

“I said I’d go when you gave me money to go out for dinner. Cough it up” Mandy demands, holding out her hand and frowning at him as he re-emerges from his bedroom in a new thinly striped button down.

The doorbell rings and Mickey’s eyes widen a bit as he quickly slaps a crisp twenty-dollar bill into his sister’s hand, ushering her towards the front door as she sings out, “And I’m taking your car too!”

“I don’t care! Just leave, now!”

Pulling the front door open in haste, they both find Ian is standing there, his face bright with a smile as he spots the two of them.

“Hey Mandy!” he says, his tone as friendly as ever.

“Hey Ian!” she says, her cheeky smile getting bigger, “I’m starving. Are you starving?”

“Oh” Ian asks politely, “Are you joining us?”

_Fuck no._

“My sister is leaving now” Mickey says firmly, and after a brief and awkward pause after her and Ian switch places in the doorway, she finally gives in and steps outside, Mickey practically slamming the door closed behind her annoying ass.

“Sorry about her” he mumbles, blushing like a damn high schooler as soon as its just him and Ian.

His boyfriend looks…so amazing tonight.

Ian clearly made as much of a conscious effort as Mickey did to dress nicely casual tonight, looking fucking fantastic in black pressed jeans and a faded blue Alfani button down, even though they were just doing a romantic dinner in tonight.

Besides buying a new shirt himself for this occasion only as well, even though he ended up not being able to wear it, Mickey had stepped his cooking game up decently too.

Something he would literally do for Ian only, Mickey had spent days deciding what nice meal to make for him and his boyfriend tonight.

“Oh it’s no problem” Ian answers about Mandy, cheeks a little flushed too.

“Um, dinner’s almost ready” Mickey says, scratching the back of his head awkwardly, “Want to chill on the couch for a few? I’ll bring you a beer”.

Ian smiles and nods and Mickey heads back into the kitchen, taking a deep breath to chill out as he reaches into the fridge for two beers, cracking them open and heading into the living room to deliver Ian’s.

He just wanted tonight to be perfect so badly, and feeling like a dork gets him even more flustered.

His boyfriend is just reaching out to take the beer, a thanks already forming on his perfect lips when the fire alarm suddenly starts wailing like a banshee, making both of them jump in surprise.

“Fuck!” Mickey shouts, slamming the beers down on the coffee table and running for the oven. He barely remembers to yank on oven mitts before he yanks the chicken out, waving the mitts to clear some of the grey smoke that spills out.

“God dammit” he whispers, dropping the pan onto the stovetop and trying to inspect the two stuffed chicken breasts with a spatula to see if they are salvageable.

_Why was he fucking this up so badly?_

Ian appears quietly at his side while he’s swearing to himself, angry and mortified, and he feels the redhead put a warm hand on his shoulder, rubbing it gently.

He’s clearly trying to make him feel better, “They’re only burnt on the bottom Mick. We can just cut that part off. They still look amazing”.

“No, it’s…” Mickey starts to exhale, frustrated, “They’re supposed to be perfect. I spent two hours getting everything ready and fucking Mandy kept getting in the way and distracting me and-“

Ian cuts off his rant with a firm kiss, smiling gently when he pulls away to stretch upwards and switch off the alarm. Once it’s quiet in the kitchen again, even though their ears are still ringing, he claims, “I don’t know what your definition of perfect is, Mick. But my boyfriend cooking a nice romantic dinner for me is mine”.

Mickey’s anger starts to dissipate at the sincere statement, but he still says a little reproachfully, “That he burnt”.

“It’s fine” Ian insists, inspecting the other waiting dish on the stove top, “Wow…you roasted carrots and potatoes too? This honestly looks better than what I eat almost every single day of the year Mick. Including some major holidays”.

“Really?” Mickey asks, almost immediately wanting to kick himself for how fucking childish he sounds, wanting approval.

“Really, with the spices and herbs and everything, looks amazing”.

With a faint smile, Mickey starts to load up their plates, and Ian goes to retrieve their beers from the living room coffee table, returning with a smile and a kiss for Mickey’s rough cheek as he gets into the chair at his boyfriend’s left side.

“Cheers” he says with a grin, clinking his bottle against Mickey’s as they raise them together. After gulping down a few long pulls of the lager to ease away the last of his stress, Mickey starts cutting into his stuffed chicken, Ian doing the same.

He tries not to roll his eyes at the look on Ian’s face as he starts chewing his food methodically, nodding his head the whole time like it’s the best thing he’s ever tasted.

“Fuck off” Mickey says, covering his shy smile with his hand as he keeps eating, and Ian just shrugs innocently, laughing, “Do you want me to pretend I don’t like it or something? It’s so good Mick”.

“You’re being a kiss ass” Mickey jokes, taking another drink of his beer as Ian takes another bite, who immediately shakes his head in denial.

“Slightly biased? Maybe. Kiss ass, no”.

They joke and smile throughout most of the meal, which Mickey can finally admit to himself at least, turned out pretty well. And halfway through, Ian reaches across to rest his hand affectionately over Mickey’s left one, which was resting on the tabletop, the black U-UP tattoos facing his boyfriend.

Once they are finished eating, Mickey remembers and asks a little teasingly, because he did see that Ian didn’t bring anything, “I thought you were bringing dessert man”.

Ian flushes a bit, so he quickly adds, “I’m totally fucking with you. No worries. I’m stuffed anyways”.

_Why did he think that would be funny?_

“No, no” Ian argues, “It’s just…I bought nice brownies from the bakery for the first night we planned this and it turns out my stupid brother ate them. So I didn’t have time to get more and I just had to grab something we already had at home”.

“Oh” Mickey says, surprised, because he actually didn’t see Ian walk in holding anything. But then his boyfriend reaches over into the pocket of the sweater he had arrived with, slung over the chair on his other side, and digs out what he apparently brought for dessert.

Mickey’s face breaks into a ridiculous smile as soon as he sees it, and he can’t help but laugh at Ian’s embarrassment, who after a beat starts laughing too. He had freakin managed to hide a wrapped Little Debbie Cosmic brownie in his pocket, one of the delicious little fudge things that were covered in rainbow sprinkles.

“We have them for the kid’s school lunches” Ian admits, as Mickey finally catches his breath through his amusement, reaching over to clap his boyfriend on the back. “You’re fucking adorable you know that? Like, fuck that word, but seriously”.

Ian laughs again as he unwraps the little rainbow brownie and breaks it carefully in half, handing one of them to Mickey, almost like a child, who takes it in delight, cramming the small square in his mouth and giving his boyfriend a thumbs up as he does the same.

When they are done with their “classy” dessert as Ian calls it, they stand side by side at the sink, Mickey scrubbing the dishes clean even though Ian had argued he should be the one doing the dishes because Mickey cooked, but in the end he settled for drying and stacking when he realized he wouldn’t win against Mickey’s raised eyebrows.

Mickey feels Ian bump shoulders with him gently once it feels like they’ve both been quiet for too long, and its honestly just because sometimes he doesn’t even know what to say to Ian, he’s just so content being around him.

But he smiles as he feels Ian turn his head and brush his lips up against his cheek again before wiping down the last plate he hands towards him.

“Wanna go pick out a movie for us to watch? Still got an hour and a half or so before Mandy comes back. Just gonna use the bathroom” Mickey asks him as they dry off their hands.

Ian nods agreeably as he puts the hand towel back over the stove handle, “Sure. But no promises it won’t be some cheesy as fuck comedy. I’m feeling like laughing”.

“Whatever you want” Mickey calls back as he heads towards the bathroom. He does take a piss but really he just wanted an excuse to brush his teeth and splash his face in case him and Ian started kissing during the movie or something, so he does that quickly while he runs the tap, trying to be incognito about it.

When he heads back into the living room though, Ian hasn’t even started a movie, and is poring over an old and thick album that makes Mickey’s stomach squeeze a bit when he sees it.

Ian looks up and reddens as he sees them standing there, like he got caught doing something he shouldn’t be. “I’m sorry. It was beneath all the DVD’s and I was…fuck, I guess I was being nosy. I’m sorry”.

After a pause, Mickey shakes his head, coming over to sit down beside him as he lights a cigarette quietly, tapping some gray ash into the glass tray on the coffee table. “It’s okay”.

He peers over at the page Ian is turned to, seeing a picture of himself from his third birthday, judging by the candle on the sloppy cake in front of himself, sitting propped up in a woman’s arms, who’s smiling at him.

“That your mom?” Ian asks, a little bluntly, he reddens again after he says it, but Mickey doesn’t really care.

“I guess” he says, “Like I said before, don’t really remember her. She left soon after this I think”.

“Your Dad didn’t tell you what happened?”

“Nah. She was disappearing more and more and by the time I was five she was done comin back” he answers, blowing smoke out casually between his lips. He has long since stopped hurting over his abandonment issues.

Ian nods, flipping over another page in the album and smiling at a slightly blurry picture of Mickey at around seven years old, flipping of the photographer, his face entirely screwed up and mad as he stands dripping in the middle of a backyard during summer, wearing boxers for a swimsuit.

“My uncle Kenny sprayed me with a hose before he took that” Mickey laughs, remembering the day. “Imagine if we knew each other when we were kids” Ian responds, shaking his head at the thought. “God we would have had fun”.

“True” Mickey agrees, “Probably would have gotten in a shit ton of trouble though”.

Ian continues to flip through the album, pointing out his favorites while Mickey nods along and explains the photos when he has to, indulging his boyfriend in his interest at his childhood that he doesn’t quite understand.

Eventually though his boyfriend closes the album gently, putting it on the coffee table as he turns towards him. “I have to go in a few minutes, opening the store early tomorrow” he says apologetically.

“Okay” Mickey answers, getting up to accompany him to the door, but Ian puts a hand out, stopping him.

“I said in a few minutes”.

He leans forward, capturing Mickey’s face with his hands and pulling him into a wonderful kiss, one that quickly has Mickey reaching out to hold his boyfriend’s arms in return, wanting to feel him even closer.

He feels breathless when Ian eventually pulls away, clearing his throat and readjusting himself subtly as they both get up and walk towards the door, sharing one more long kiss before Ian leaves, turning to wave goodbye again as he reaches the end of the walkway and realizes Mickey is still there in the doorway.

Cheeks warm, Mickey goes inside and slides down against the closed door, smiling to himself. He gets up after a minute or two of running through their last kiss again in his mind, and heads back to the living room for another calming cigarette, hearing his phone ping and announcing a text as he does.

 _Received:_ I miss you already

 _Sent:_ I miss you too.

He did too. He used to be the kind of guy that could happily spend days barely interacting with fucking anyone, and now, now he was feeling almost a little hollow, looking over at where Ian had been sitting not ten minutes before.

When his phone goes off again, he figures its another text from Ian, but its not.

 _Received [Mandy}:_ Hey, on my way home. Got Chinese, but I'm keeping the change. Hope the dinner date went well :)

When Mickey hears the front door open up again, he gets up from his bed and wanders towards the living room, leaning against a doorway across from it and waiting while his sister takes off her converse, locking the door behind herself.

“Hey” he says as she turns around.

“Hey” she smiles, “How did it go?”

“It…I really fucking like him Mandy” he ends up saying, unintentionally.

She looks at him for a long moment, before nodding her head. “I know” she says softly, and there’s a gentle sort of happiness for him in her tone. No trace of the earlier frustration or teasing towards each other is there anymore. She drifts her hand across her shoulder as she passes by him to go to her own bedroom, and Mickey waits for just a moment before he calls out after her, “Mandy?”

“Yeah?” she answers over her shoulder, still walking.

He clears his throat, “Thanks for taking off tonight. Sorry I was a dick. But it was important to me. Having this, with him”.

Mandy turns, and without a word, just gives him that quiet one of a kind Milkovich smile, one with all the sincere meaning in the world.


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one’s for you, fellow Canadians :P

Cough.

Awkward silence.

Mickey clears his throat impatiently again, tapping his left index finger against his right bicep continuously while he waits. Across from him, Ian’s blonde bimbo of an employee Karen looks up from her iPhone at him, her bright pink painted fingernails still scrolling along its screen blindly.

The matching impatience she has in response to his own is obvious in her bored tone, “I already told you, he’s doing an interview”.

“You said that ten minutes ago. How long does it fucking take to interview someone for a part time job?” Mickey asks, raising a dark eyebrow at her along with his question.

Seriously, it feels like he’s been standing here forever.

As soon as the words leave his mouth though, the door to the back room of Crush finally swings open, and tall and handsome Ian comes striding out like a professional with the girl he had been interviewing, shaking her hand and sharing a polite laugh over some joke they had shared in the back that Mickey didn’t hear.

Immediately, Mickey straightens up from his place leaning and complaining in front of the cash register and counter, a smile crossing his face and stretching at the corners of his blue eyes as he tips his head at Ian fondly, “Hey you”.

“Oh, look who’s all sunshine and rainbows all of a sudden” Karen mutters under her breath with a smirk, clearly trying to contain her amusement at Mickey’s sudden change in attitude.

“That a fucking gay joke?” Mickey demands suspiciously, frowning at her as Ian says goodbye to his interviewee before heading over to stand at his side.

Karen shrugs, “Take it however you want Milkovich”.

“Oh c’mon guys” Ian says, slinging his arm around Mickey’s shoulder and resting it heavily before he plants a kiss on his cheek that has his stiff body softening like butter, “No arguing in the store about who gets to spend my break with me”.

“Fuck off” Karen laughs, “And please, take him. I thought  _I_ was a bitch”.

Mickey flips off the skinny blonde as she laughs again dumbly, and even Ian is rolling his eyes at her less than friendly teasing. “Karen, we don’t insult customers” he chides, his tone a little sing songy.

She frowns, “He’s not a customer, he’s your boyfriend”.

“He buys stuff here too” Ian argues in return, his tone a little less playful now.

“You just say that so he can loiter and you won’t get written up for it”.

Ian stiffens slightly and Mickey smirks, knowing she’s pushed too much and now she’s gonna get in shit. “Go ahead Mick, I’ll catch up with you” Ian says meaningfully, nudging his head towards the door. Mickey obediently walks away to give them some space, but stops and waits inside so he can still hear, and neither of them appear to notice.

Ian folds his arms across his broad chest, the word ‘Crush’ now displayed fantastically across it in Mickey’s opinion.

“Karen, I know that we are sort of friends, but you can’t talk to me like that. I’m your superior at work, and you need to respect that, and my boyfriend too. And don’t give me that look, I’m serious”.

Karen sighs, putting her phone down on the counter respectfully before she stares at him dead on, making one final joke. “Fiiiine, I’ll work on it. And Ian? Maybe you both need to get laid, you’re just as pissy as he is today”.

Mickey glances towards Ian curiously to gauge his reaction to the apparently innocent jab. His boyfriend is definitely blushing, even though Karen’s back to looking at her phone screen again and not him.

“Ha  _ha”_ Ian says sarcastically, “That falls under the category of I’m assistant manager and you are  _not_ again. And by the way, I can easily interview an extra person to replace you with Jackson” he trills, walking towards Mickey and raising his ginger eyebrows towards him as he makes a face.

Mickey raises his dark ones right back, deciding to hold the question on the tip of his tongue until Karen can’t hear them.

“You won’t fire me. You love me!” she calls after the redhead.

“Mhmm, sure” Ian answers, reaching for Mickey’s warm hand as he pushes open the door to Crush for the two of them to step outside.

They are walking across the parking lot together towards where the Echo is parked when Mickey clears his throat and asks, “Does she not know? That we uh, haven’t…?”

“No. I meant what I said about work appropriate. Me and her joke around a lot but if I want to eventually become manager I need to keep the people beneath me in line”.

Even though its warm and sunny out, Mickey shivers a bit as Ian mentions keeping someone beneath him in line, his spine tingling at the dirty thought that flashes through his head unbidden.

He _is_  in fact probably a little pissier than usual because they haven’t messed around for a while, but its been due to lack of opportunity, not to either of their’s lack of want. He kisses Ian on the cheek, smirking a bit as they separate and climb into his car, slamming the doors shut before Mickey starts the engine and rolls out of the parking spot.

“Kinda hot listening to you be all managerial. Think you could boss me around like that?” he asks, edging past a giant SUV.

Ian snorts at the question, probably not catching on that he was really only half joking. “Yeah I could. By the way, I’m starving. Where are you taking me for lunch?”

“The Tim Horton’s over on Danforth” Mickey answers, glancing sideways at the road before he turns to the left, Ian already reaching for the dials of the radio in his car like he always does.

“Is it Canada day?” his boyfriend asks cheekily as he selects some Bruno Mars song, and Mickey rolls his eyes. “Think you’re funny huh? And I don’t fuckin know. But I like their French Vanilla’s”.

“Oh” Ian says innocently, “is that how you came out?”

“Fuck off” Mickey laughs, “They’re good alright? You’ll see. You can get sandwiches and shit or too. Whatever you want”. They pull up to the store and Ian grabs his hand right before he goes in to park at an empty space in the lot, “Let’s do drive through instead. I’d rather just eat in here with you than go inside”.

Mickey looks down at the slightly freckled hand resting over his tattooed on the shift lever and smiles. He doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to the feel of that, a hand on his own. Even after weeks of dating it makes his heart beat a little faster.

“Alright”.

As requested, he pulls up to the drive through instead, impatiently listening to the regular spiel of customer service he gets before he can place his order for the two of them after agreeing with Ian on what to get.

“Yeah uh, can we get a medium French vanilla, a large regular, two turkey bacon’s on white, potato wedges and… fuck it, throw in a box of the donut things” he says into the speaker.

“Timbits?” the voice over the intercom asks.

Even though she can’t see him, Mickey flips his hand up like she should know what the fuck he’s talking about. “Yeah, whatever. 10 of them”.

“Okay, that will be $21.50 sir. Please pull up to the window”.

After driving up to said window, Mickey hands over the cash for the food and then passes item after item over to Ian to arrange between them before driving to an empty place in the lot facing a wooden fence, so they have some privacy as they dig into their meal.

“Thanks for lunch” Ian says through a mouthful of his sandwich a few minutes later, swiping some mayo away from the corner of his mouth with his thumb.

Again, the word adorable flashes across Mickey’s mind as he sees Ian’s childishly stuffed cheeks, and he almost physically shakes his head to make it go away.

Since when did that become a part of his regular fuckin vocabulary?

“No problem man. Here, try this”.

He takes another sip of his French Vanilla before he passes it over to Ian, who takes one sip, and then immediately another larger one. “It’s like… vanilla hot chocolate, but better” he says excitedly, nodding his head in approval.

“And with caffeine” Mickey reminds him as he reaches for it back, because that’s probably the most important part. Without moving it an inch, Ian asks “Switch with me?” while looking over at him innocently. Mickey glances towards the regular coffee sitting ignored in Ian’s cupholder.

“Yeah… sure” he grunts as he reaches over for it instead, begrudgingly accommodating his happy boyfriend.

 It was worth the smile on his face anyways.

“So you looking for a new employee or whatever?” Mickey asks, remembering about the interviews while he’s reaching over to grab a potato wedge from the container resting between Ian’s thighs.

His boyfriend nods as he grabs one too, “Yeah. We lost Darrel recently because he’s going to school full time now for mechanics or something, so I need another part timer on the team”.

“Never met the guy” Mickey responds, smashing his empty sandwich wrapper into a ball. He glances around himself for a napkin before he gives up and wipes his hands over his jeans.

Ian shrugs, “That’s because he usually opens the store. Just have to find someone chill enough to get along with Karen and my other key holder Samantha, but energetic enough to keep sales going like I do, you know?”

_Energetic enough._

“I do know. What was that the first day I came in? You know, when you asked if I wanted to see your proud cock or something?” Mickey smirks, loving the memory of it.

Fuck, if he knew  _then_ that he would end up getting to date the hot redhead in the bodybuilding shop…

“In my defence… you did want to” Ian says pointedly, nodding his head with a playful grin as Mickey raises his black eyebrows over at him, popping a sweet glazed tim bit in his boyfriend’s mouth to serve a purpose, “Shut up”.

“Mmm. Hand me another chocolate one please” Ian says as he chews, checking his phone screen at the same time, “And shit, can we get going actually? My break is almost over”.

“Taking all the good ones Gallagher” Mickey groans teasingly, passing over the box of donut holes after leaving the last chocolate one for Ian. He starts his car up again, pulling out of the lot with a slight screech as he hits the gas hard. He hadn’t even been watching the time.

“You’re so good to me” Ian responds with a cheeky smile, reaching over while Mickey focuses on the road. He feels a warm hand settle on his thigh and then slide over onto his crotch, and he can’t fight the grin of interest that forms on his face at the touch.

“The fuck you doing, huh?”

“Nothing” Ian answers innocently, “Why would you ask if I’m doing something?” He squeezes at Mickey’s crotch gently, who feels himself starting to get hard.

“You’re a dick” he says with a laugh, but he lets out a shaky sigh as Ian continues to rub at him rhythmically with his cupped hand once they pull into Crush’s lot, right up to the parking spot in front of the building.

He tries to hold Ian’s hand in place over his chub as soon as he stops the car, a little over the parking line of the spot next to him actually, but Ian disappointingly takes it away.

“Sorry, I got another interview. Five minutes ago actually. You free tonight?” he asks as they both push open their doors.

Mickey’s dick is doing more thinking than his brain currently is as he follows Ian out of the car, readjusting himself before he slams his door shut in unison with his boyfriend’s. Most of the time, he’d spent every minute with Ian he could.

“I work at 11. But until then I’m yours” he answers.

“I like the sound of that” Ian says sincerely.

So did Mickey.

They enter the store together, the brass bell against the door chiming familiarly as they step inside, and Mickey sees some short curly haired dude standing at the counter and chatting with Karen like they’ve been friends for ages.

“Hey there. I’m Ian, assistant store manager. Sorry I’m a little late for your interview” Ian says politely, extending a hand out for a friendly shake as soon as the guy turns to face them and waves.

The guy shrugs his shoulders with a casual grin, “No worries. It’s cool. I’m Trevor by the way”.

Mickey’s blue eyes narrow as the guy’s brown ones quickly slide up and down his boyfriend’s toned body, Ian clearly oblivious to the fact that he’s being checked out while he stands there in his ‘Crush’ t-shirt like a gorgeous idiot.

This Trevor dude is about Mickey’s height, but a scrawny looking fucker, and someone who’s ass he could definitely kick. Mickey cracks his knuckles subtly.

The guy doesn’t even glance over at him, but instead follows Ian around the side of the counter, who’s waving him towards the back room for his interview. Ian holds the door for him politely, letting him head in in first before he turns to smile and wave at Mickey once more.

“Thanks again for lunch, you were right. Their French Vanillas are amazing. I’ll see you later”.

Mickey watches them disappear into the back room together, very aware of the distinct distaste he already has for the guy Ian is interviewing.

This Trevor guy needs to go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ^ My feelings on season 8.  
> Also, don't panic, he is literally only in this fic so Mickey can get jealous and Ian can eventually reject T hard lol. Nothing happens between him and Ian.... just my way of venting frustration.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just another reminder, trust me, Ian is NOT interested in Trevor here  
> *amen* :P  
> Also, I had to change text message maker so they look different.

Instead of going to get his car keys, Mickey grabs for the battered half-empty pack of Marlboro cigarettes resting on a side table as he quickly heads out the front door, pausing for a moment at the top of the porch steps to light one before he jogs down them.

He’s still agitated by the stupid prick that had been waiting at Crush to be interviewed for a job when him and Ian got back from lunch, but he figures the girl from before was the shoe in, because she actually looked fit, like she worked out and shit. Plus they looked like they were joking and getting along or whatever, so that had to count for something.

It also didn’t help his mood when he arrived home to find Mandy throwing an impromptu “party” with five of her screechy girl friends, two of which always giggled around him while the others just threw him strange looks. He’s glad to be outside and away from that now.

Smoke clouds around Mickey’s pale face as he exhales heavily, tapping grey ash from his cigarette to the sidewalk while he halts beside the bus stop Ian’s supposed to arrive at, leaning casually against it’s battered plastic side, scraped to shit by years of kids and teenagers carving words and initials into it.

It’s a warm and pleasant night in the South Side, a little hot out actually, so he’s glad he switched into a sleeveless muscle shirt when he got home after a brief visit to the gym after lunch. Few things made Mickey’s self-esteem flicker in pride, but one for sure was the look in Ian’s eyes when he saw his biceps flexing.

Mickey sees the harsh headlights appear in the distance, the bus rolling down the road towards him like a lumbering beast spewing grey smoke before it stops and the doors flap open with a squeak, Mickey raising his eyebrow impatiently as he watches a few people pile off before Ian.

Slinging his backpack over one shoulder as he steps off the 141 bus, his boyfriend looks surprised to see him standing there, and then happy, “Hey! I didn’t know you’d be waiting for me”.

Mickey holds his warm gaze for a moment, “Kind of a shit neighborhood at night you know?” he says, his excuse completely obvious and he knows it too.

Ian smiles, his face crinkling a bit in amusement, “Yeah, two blocks over we are all PTA meetings and soy lattes. You’re so sweet Mick”.

Though he secretly likes the comment, Mickey just grunts in response as Ian takes his hand, swinging it a bit playfully before he takes the cigarette Mickey is currently working on and offering over politely.

He takes a long and appreciative puff before he hands it back, “You got like an hour before you have to leave for work right? Should we hang at your place til then?”

Reluctantly, Mickey shakes his head, thinking of the past several hours he’d spent in the Milkovich house. “Mandy’s got like five fuckin friends over right now. We can chill in my car though”.

“Sounds good” Ian says agreeably, “I really just wanted some alone time with you. Been thinking about you all day”.

Mickey’s pale cheeks flush with pleasure, and he’s suddenly glad that it’s dark out so Ian can’t see how much that meant to him. “Mmm” he answers, raising an eyebrow over at his boyfriend in interest, “With me or with my crotch? Seemed pretty interested in it at lunch”.

Ian laughs out loud, poking his tongue out just slightly between his perfect lips before he answers cheekily, “Both”.

Glad now that he ended up parking his car farther away from the streetlight near his house than he usually is able to because of Mandy’s fuckin friends, Mickey jokingly opens the passenger door for Ian after he unlocks it, waving his hand with flourish to usher him in.

“Thanks sir” Ian says, throwing himself in sideways onto the seat with a laugh. Mickey smirks as he goes around to the other side, opening his door for himself and sliding in, before glancing over at his boyfriend while the car lights above them are still on.

_God he’s so-_

“Oh, forgot to tell you, the Crush team is now complete” Ian suddenly remembers to tell him, briefly interrupting Mickey’s other anticipatory thoughts, “Pain in the ass of interviews, now over and done with, thanks to yours truly”.

“Oh yeah?” Mickey asks distractedly. Biting his bottom lip in anticipation as Ian reaches over towards his grey sweatpants with one hand, he reaches beside his seat to pull the lever and lean it back, Ian quickly doing the same with a grin before he reaches over to grab at him again.

“Hold on, just gonna set a timer” Mickey tells him, pulling out his phone and hammering at the touch buttons for a moment as Ian looks at him in confusion, “To time how long it takes?” he asks slowly, clearly trying to understand.

Timer officially set up, Mickey tosses his phone to the backseat. “No, to…what the fuck Ian? I’m giving myself an hour before I gotta head to the hospital you goof”.

Ian blushes and shakes his head, “Oh! Right!”

Mickey’s laughter at the innocent confusion almost immediately dies down as Ian’s cupped hand starts to rub harder against his crotch, and he leans back in his seat, ready to enjoy the pleasure as he tilts his head sideways to watch him work through slightly hazy eyes.

“Feels so good Ian” he says, pushing his hips upwards to encourage him to get in there some more. Ian winks at him before lifting the stretchy waistband of his sweatpants to pull them up over Mickey’s boner gently, exposing his dick to the car’s interior before wrapping his large hand around the base of it.

And then Ian starts talking again, but it’s not about the task at hand, no pun intended. He lets out a sigh of relaxation as he strokes his hand up and down Mickey’s entire length, Mickey doing the exact opposite as he sucks in his breath deeply.

Fuck it feels so good. It’s hard not just fucking his hand at this point.

“I’m just so glad we found someone that should fit well with the team. Honestly, Karen is not for everyone and its been really stressful filling shifts”.

Mickey grunts as he nods his head in response, trying to focus on Ian’s words because he obviously wants to talk about it but it’s a little fucking difficult to right now.

“That’s great” he answers distractedly, pushing his hips upwards a bit, Ian refocuses and tightens his grip again, sending another ripple of pleasure through his groin.

“He’s got sales experience too apparently so that should mean less training. Not a fan of training”.

Wait. What the fuck?

“He?” Mickey asks, the rest of his body stiffening. But who knows how many people Ian interviewed, he quickly reminds himself, so it’s probably not him.

Ian nods, his arm still going and oblivious to Mickey’s sudden extreme discomfort in the darkness, because he can’t see his darkening face. “Yeah, Trevor. You saw him today”.

He can’t miss what happens next though, because even as Mickey grits his teeth to try and push the sudden unreasonable anger from his mind, its taking a physical toll on his body that unfortunately Ian is soon commenting on.

“You’re uh…you’re not really hard anymore eh? Are you uncomfortable lying like that or something?”

“No” Mickey mutters, pushing Ian’s hand away gently and lifting his sweats back over his softening boner.

He hears shuffling from beside himself and then the car fills with a soft light again, after Ian reaches upwards for the switch. “What’s wrong?” Ian asks, frowning in worry as he looks at Mickey’s face, who’s no longer smiling.

He sniffs, “The fuck did you have to hire him for? What about the chick?” Ian looks confused, “I just did the interviews. I gave my recommendation, but the manager made the final call. And she wasn’t as qualified”.

Mickey rests the heels of his right hand against the steering well, doing his best to control his temper. He knew Ian had no idea what he could get like when he was angry, and he didn’t want him to. Besides, it’s not Ian he’s angry at.

“I’m sorry, are you mad at me or something?”

“I’m not mad” Mickey says, realizing damn well his voice is saying otherwise. “Just, there’s no way you were blind enough to not notice he was checking you out right in fucking front of me”.

Ian looks over at him like he can’t believe he’s being serious, so Mickey stares right back, eyebrows arched in annoyance.

“I…he probably didn’t even know we were together”.

“Oh, so you didn’t feel the need to tell him” Mickey says, feeling like a fucking bitch even as he says it. But he can’t fucking help it, his blood is starting to boil just thinking about the preppy douchebag in the store today. Mickey had a good sense about people, and he knew the dude wasn’t as innocent as he looked.

“It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to bring that up as soon as I met him” Ian says, still seeming bewildered, but also getting a little worked up in his own defence at the same time.

Mickey takes a deep breath, “I really don’t want you working with him” he admits, plain and simple.

“I’m really sorry, but he’s hired. It’s not my decision, and what am I supposed to tell my manager? That my boyfriend doesn’t like him, so he has to go?”

It’s not about…

“Whatever Ian”.

Mickey doesn’t know what else to say, and the passive aggressive comment is just about the only thing he can say not involving another curse word.

The timer on his phone that’s still resting in the back seat starts to go off, ringing repeatedly and reminding him that it’s time to go to work.

“Have a great shift” Ian says back sarcastically after a brief moment of silence, before he pushes open the car door and gets out, slamming it shut behind himself and stalking down the sidewalk towards his own street.

Mickey sits there fuming at himself for another moment or so before he punches the steering wheel, turning the ignition afterwards and driving to the General hospital much faster than is necessary to get to his shift on time.

The floors at the hospital have probably never been cleaned as vigorously as they are tonight, because he puts all his frustration into his mopping, practically slamming the mop head against each tile he encounters.

He finishes his torturous shift at 5 a.m. and immediately checks his phone to see if he has any text messages from Ian, his shoulders slumping in disappointment as he finds the screen is blank. He hates this feeling, so fucking much, that things aren’t right with Ian. That’s not what was supposed to happen at all last night.

He hits the call icon beside Ian’s contact info and listens to the phone ring somberly until it goes to voicemail, clearing his throat as soon as he hears Ian’s voice ring through the phone, announcing that he’s reached “ _Ian Gallagher_ ” and to “ _Please leave a voicemail_ ”.

“Hey you, it’s Mickey. Listen I’m… I’m sorry about last night. For the way I acted”.

He pinches the bridge of his nose. He’s not used to saying sorry for something that pissed him off as much as this did, but he gets that he snapped a little too easily the night before, over something that wasn’t even really his boyfriend’s fault.

He also didn’t realize how much it meant to him to find a text from Ian when he checked his phone after work, until there wasn’t one there for him to find anymore.

“I was being a jealous shit. And I want to say I’m sorry for that too, for being jealous, but I don’t know if I am sorry… Ian you’re like the best damn thing that’s ever happened to me, and I don’t want to lose you”.

He pauses, listening to the dead tone of the voice mail receiver for a second before he continues, shaking his head and clearing his throat, “That sound kind of possessive or some shit I bet. I…fuck. I’m really fucking this up, aren’t I? I don’t want to fuck this up. I-“

Mickey hears the click that tells him the voicemail he’s left is too long, and he hangs up the phone in frustration, swearing under his breath. He waits for a while before he shoots off another text.

He drives home in a sullen silence, wishing Ian was there beside him to fiddle with the radio like he usually would, picking a song he felt suited his mood. He’s exhausted when he gets home, tossing his dirty uniform across his bedroom carelessly and throwing himself onto his mattress with a groan, but he can’t fucking sleep, he’s too worried now.

“Fuck” he mutters aloud.

He gets up and leaves his bedroom in defeat, reluctantly heading towards Mandy’s room. He knows she’s probably still passed out, but fuck it, this calls for an emergency. He knocks on her door loudly before just going right in. She’s stirring in her bed, forehead scrunched in annoyance as she glares over at him from her place on the pillow.

“What the fuck, its like 6:30!” she moans, looking at her digital clock, “Get out!”

“I fucked up” he mutters.

She immediately sits up, her attitude shifting already. “The cops coming or something?”

Jesus. He hadn’t been in trouble like that in years. He shakes his head, “What? No I, I fucked up with Ian”.

“Mickey” she groans, “Not now. Seriously, get out. It’s 6:30 in the fucking morning”.

“You’re already fuckin awake” he mutters, hesitating before he actually leaves. There’s always a balance point with her where Mandy might change her mind, before she tells him to really fuck off or gives in to what he’s asking for. Which again, isn’t too often.

She sighs, and he knows she’s giving in thank fuck. “What happened?”

He explains the situation from the meeting at Crush right to the fight, trying to remember as close as he can the exact words Ian said during their conversation in the car. But it turns out she’s less interested in what Ian said or did, or more focused on _his_ mistakes of course.

“Mickey, I get why you’re annoyed. I’m a Milkovich. I threw a fucking milkshake at a girl for winking at my boyfriend once. But not everyone gets that”.

“Well what the fuck do I do then?” he practically demands. Being a Milkovich can’t be a genetic condition for failing at relationships, he knows he can do better.

Mandy shrugs, yawning as she answers. “See if he accepts your apology I guess. If he does, don’t bring it up again unless the dude makes a move. Then you have a right to kick his ass. Ian can’t argue with that”.

He sighs heavily, realizing there’s not much he can do at this point other than wait. “Yeah… I guess. I’m gonna go have a fuckin smoke. Sorry for waking you up”.

“It’s fine” she grumbles, flopping back onto her bed and yanking her covers up again, “And don’t wake me up again unless the cops are coming”.

He rolls his eyes before he heads back to his own bedroom, digging through the pocket in his janitorial uniform that he had thrown into a pile for the crumpled pack of cigarettes he left in it.

Lighting one anxious smoke after the other, he still can’t fucking sleep until almost eight in the morning, but right when his exhausted eyes are finally closing, he hears the front doorbell ring.

“Mandy?” he croaks sleepily, but she’s not answering, and then his phone goes off with a text.

Mickey immediately throws his tangled bedsheets away from his body, barely pulling on his sweats properly before he goes running for the door. But before he opens it, he pauses, his heart thudding in his chest as he realizes how he feels.

Fuck he’s…he’s scared. Scared Ian’s going to tell him, _I’m done with you._

He takes a deep breath before he forces himself to open the door, bracing himself for the worst.

But Ian’s standing there waiting for him, shifting slightly in place with his hands jammed in his hoodie’s light grey pockets, “Hey”.

“Hey” Mickey answers immediately, his voice low and sounding more unsteady than usual.

“I uh, I got your message” Ian tells him.

There’s another moment of nervous silence before Mickey knows what that means, because Ian’s solemn expression doesn’t change at first. But then there’s a faint smile forming across his beautiful lips… “You really mean what you said? That I’m the best thing that’s happened to you?”

Mickey’s throat feels thick with emotion, and he glances downwards at the porch before he nods silently. He can’t believe he admitted that so openly. But he had been completely honest on that message.

Ian takes a deep breath at the admission, “I told Karen I want her to train him. We won’t be working together very much. And when I have an opportunity, I’ll tell him I’m dating you. If you want you can just come in and I’ll introduce you as my boyfriend. I should have just done that yesterday”.

Mickey lets out a sigh of relief, feeling it flood through his entire chest as he realizes Ian’s not going anywhere. He nods, feeling himself start to smile, “Yeah I’d…yeah, that would be good”.

Ian smiles a little back tentatively at him, “Good”. They both look at each other for another moment and then Mickey’s shoulders drop a little in defeat.

“Can I kiss you? I was worried like all fucking night that I screwed this up” he says with a tired sigh.

Without saying anything, Ian leans forward and takes his face in his hands, kissing him softly until Mickey’s heart starts to pound. When they pull away, Ian looks into his worried eyes, his own crinkling in the corners.

“Wanna hear something funny? _I_ was worried I screwed things up too. I’m fucking crazy about you Mick… I hope you know that. I have been since day one”.

Wordlessly, Mickey leans in and kisses him, bringing his hand around to hold the back of Ian's head. He feels the exact same way. 


	18. Chapter 18

“Don’t be mad at me”.

“Huh?”

Half listening to his boyfriend as he drops him off at work, Mickey checks back behind the Echo once more as he backs into the only free parking space in the lot that Crush shares with a half a dozen other stores.

Ian didn’t usually ask for rides anywhere, but he did today and Mickey never forgot what he said about riding the public bus. So, whenever he could he dropped Ian off or picked him up at work, or anywhere else he needed to go. Besides helping him out, it meant he got to see his boyfriend more often, so in his mind it was worth the extra gas money he’d put on since he met Ian.

“I said don’t be mad at me” Ian repeats, and he looks both slightly cheeky and apologetic from the moment Mickey finally frowns towards him as he kills the engine, “The fuck would I be mad at you for? You not gonna give me a kiss goodbye or something?”

Mickey smirks as Ian shakes his head, unable to keep the little smile off his face at his guess. “No, but I might have promised Karen I’d go on a double date with her tonight to the movies. And you know you’re my date so…”

Mickey practically groans, “Ian, why? Why the fuck. Out of anyone, why a double date with her?”

Karen doesn’t like him and he doesn’t particularly fucking like her either, so this is definitely not his ideal situation for a Friday night with Ian. At the same time, is any double date? Isn’t the whole point of going on a date to spend time one on one with someone?

“Well her date is my brother so it just sort of came about naturally, you know?”

“Jesus Christ” Mickey mutters, shaking his head, but as soon as he notices Ian waiting hesitantly for him to say something else he adds, “Well obviously I’ll go. You’ll be there”.

“I’ll buy you popcorn” Ian grins, noticeably relieved as he undoes his seatbelt while Mickey is already half way out of the car.

Not only did he drive Ian to work, most days he also literally walked him right up to the store. Noticing that a while back, Karen now often referred to him as Ian’s bodyguard, a joke he never found all that funny.

“Oh well that changes everything” Mickey says sarcastically, Ian laughing at the following playful eye roll. “Shut up” he says affectionately, grabbing Mickey’s hand as they walk across the lot together, but right before he opens the door to Crush, Mickey halts and clears his throat, stopping Ian with him.

“You-know-who in there today?” he asks, sniffing disinterestedly. Of course, he is fucking interested, or he wouldn’t have asked. But he needs to seem like he isn’t, because being the jealous boyfriend is something best done subtly, if Mandy’s advice has any merit.

“Yeah” Ian admits, “That’s sorta why I asked you to bring me to work. So I could introduce you two and make it clear to him that I’m not available. And anyways, its only for a few hours and then him and Karen switch, so I’ll be closing with her”.

“Okay” Mickey grunts. Ian tightens his grip on his hand, rubbing the soft pad of his thumb against the back of it, and Mickey relaxes slightly. Sometimes just a touch from Ian was better than a cigarette.

They walk inside of the store together and the little brass bell against the door chimes when he lets go of it, alerting the douchebag currently working inside the store of their arrival.

Trevor comes over towards them from the vitamin supplement aisle with a great big smile, raising his dark eyebrows in surprise as he sees the two of them standing together, but he only addresses Ian.

“What can I do for you today boss?”

“Sell me something” Ian says, apparently half joking and half serious, as far as Mickey can tell.

“Well I would, but I really don’t think a guy like you needs any help from our products” Trevor says, laughing like he’s the fucking funniest guy on earth or something.

Mickey mildly thinks of smashing his curly head down against the counter to see how funny he finds that, but quickly clears his throat instead at the obvious flirtatious comment, and Ian lifts their joined hands, right into Trevor’s view.

“Trevor, this is my incredible boyfriend, Mickey. Mickey, my part-timer Trevor”.

Trevor’s eyebrows rise slightly again at the comment, and Mickey frowns. The fuck does he look so surprised for?  “Oh” Trevor says, almost stammering before he quickly collects himself back into his usual smooth and in Mickey’s opinion, annoying tone, “Nice to meet you Mickey. I uh…I like your tattoos”.

Mickey glances down at the FUCK U-UP printed across his fingers, and he’s torn between asking Trevor if he wants to see them closer up, or just acting cool. He ends up doing neither though, and just raises an eyebrow sharply towards him, staring him down.  

Trevor flinches at the gesture and Mickey finally grins, “Likewise”.

Ian pulls him away towards the front of the store again and murmurs beside his ear, quietly enough so Trevor can’t hear as he gets back to front facing the shelves, “Mick, you don’t have to scare him. Look at him. He’s got nothing on you”.

Mickey flushes with both pleasure at the compliment and a little embarrassment that he was so transparent, but still glances over at him, thinking. He thinks the dude could use a little more scaring… but he guesses he can back off for now, and let Ian handle it unless he needs to step in.

Which he fucking will, if the dude thinks he can cross any lines with his boyfriend.

Ian addresses him again, touching his shoulder to get his attention. “So, double date tonight. If you are okay with that. Could you swing by my place and pick up my brother before you come here? I can give you gas money”.

Mickey gives Ian an unimpressed look, the best he can muster, “It’s two fuckin blocks over from my place, you don’t need to give me anything. I’ll be here at 9:30, alright? Good luck with Tractor over there. Doesn’t look like he can lift a fuckin ten-pound box without crying”.

Ian laughs, but then tries to quiet it as Trevor looks over, lowering his voice again. “If only I was allowed to hire my strong boyfriend to do all the heavy lifting. These arms would distract me though…” he trails off and reaches over to squeeze Mickey’s firm bicep, who of course flexes it for him.

“Jesus. Okay, you need to go now or I’m gonna act unprofessional” Ian mutters, giving him a subtle wink as Mickey bites at his bottom lip in interest, “Fine” he agrees, “But I’ll be back to make you act unprofessional again before you know it”.

“Sounds good”.

Ian leans in to give him a kiss goodbye before he leaves, and Mickey, knowing Trevor is probably watching, deepens it, running his hand across Ian’s back before he eventually pulls away.

After a couple hours spent decently working his core and arms at the gym both him and Ian still went to, Mickey returns home to throw together a quick dinner for himself, which Mandy steals from, and then starts getting ready for his double date.

He doesn’t really know what to expect from it. To be honest, he guessed high school was the time to figure that shit out, and he had missed the boat there. Not that Ian seemed to mind helping him navigate dating, at all, but it would be nice sometimes to be a little less fucking clueless when it came to this stuff.

Quickly rubbing the tiniest bit of cologne beneath his neck after sniffing three different choices, he checks his appearance in the mirror once more and then goes to grab his car keys. First he has to pick up Ian’s brother from his place, has some weird name he remembers…Lip, or something?

He’s pretty sure that’s it but he double checks Ian’s Facebook for confirmation anyways before he pulls up in front of the Gallagher house, not wanting to admit he didn’t remember.

He honks the horn as he arrives, and sees Ian’s brother open the front door and jog down the steps towards him, dressed pretty casually.

“Yo” he says as he pushes the car door to the passenger side open for him.

“Hey. Thanks for the ride” Lip pants as he climbs in, checking his phone and answering a text as Mickey starts to drive up the street. “No problem” he answers, and then there’s sort of an awkward silence left in the car.

He glances over towards Lip, unsure of what exactly they are supposed to talk about. They _are_ supposed to talk right? Shit, was he supposed to like bond or something with Ian’s brother tonight?

“So…Karen” he says, unsure of what else to say. He’s not straight but even if he was, he’s not sure he could stand her, dating or otherwise. “Yup” Lip laughs, “She’s a bit of bitch sometimes but goddamn she’s crazy in the sack”.

Mickey nods like he understands, but he doesn’t. Was he expecting Lip to be a virgin too or something?

“Ian uh, he tells me you’re cool with it” Lip soon says, coughing into his hand slightly afterwards.

Mickey glances over at him again as they reach a red light, “Huh?”

“You know”, Lip waves his hand like he’s trying to conjure up the words he apparently doesn’t feel comfortable saying, “Waiting to have sex or whatever”.

Mickey grimaces, a little uncomfortable that Ian’s brother knew about their sex life, or lack thereof more accurately, but then again so does Mandy, so maybe he should have expected that Ian would have told his brother too.

“We do other shit” he answers, immediately blushing as he realizes what he so bluntly said. But Lip just laughs, “Yeah, he told me that too. I just wanted you to know I appreciate it, you being cool with that. Not expecting stuff from my brother”.

Mickey doesn’t say anything as he pulls into Crush’s lot, just nods in response, and he realizes as he glances at the dashboard that they are still a few minutes early for Ian and Karen to be finished.

“Smoke?” Lip asks, and Mickey nods again as they both get out of the car to wait outside the building, grateful for anything that changes the topic of conversation, and grateful for the cigarette that Lip hands him.

“He’s really into you. You know that?” Lip asks, pinching his own cigarette between his fingers after he lights it and takes a drag. Mickey looks up from the concrete block he had been focusing on without realizing, and even in the fairly dark parking lot, he can see Lip’s expression.

He’s testing him. He’s acting like he’s not but he is. Trying to figure out if Ian’s safe with him, if Mickey deserves to be with his brother.

Part of him wants to be a douche in response, because he doesn’t really think its any of his fucking business to begin with, and he also doesn’t like that Lip doesn’t just come out and fucking say it.

But the other, bigger part of him, thinks of the redhead inside Crush right now, the one that had quickly become the most important thing in his life. He pictures his smile, his laugh, the curve of his smooth jaw against his hand when they kiss. The warm and happy feeling Ian makes rise in his stomach, even now as he thinks of him. How he always wants to hear from him, and it doesn’t matter if he’s tired, or in a shitty mood, Ian always makes him feel better.

“I think I’m falling in love with him” Mickey says quietly, his own eyebrows lifting as the words leave his lips.

He hadn’t been expecting to say that out loud… let alone to Ian’s brother. He’s feeling a little bit in shock right now actually, but before Lip can say anything in response to his confession, the door to Crush is opening and out come Karen and Ian, changed out of their work uniforms and done with their closing tasks for the night.

“Hey beautiful” Lip immediately says to Karen, who sails over towards him and leans in to give him a loud kiss on the cheek. Ian stands there for a moment across from Mickey like he’s not sure what to do after that, so Mickey reaches for his arm gently, giving him a quick kiss before they all head towards the car.

He knew that much. His heart is still thumping from his unexpected admission, but Ian knows nothing of it of course, and just grins towards him as they all pile into his Echo, Ian back in the passenger seat beside him where he belongs.

Mickey half focuses on the loud chatter in his full car as he drives them all to the theatre, the happy laughter, the stupid jokes, the eager catching up between brothers and friends, but he feels a little distant from it all, even as Ian’s hand eventually reaches over to rest on his thigh.

Because all Mickey can think right now about is the very real possibility that he’s falling in love for the first time in his life, and he has no fucking idea what that means.


	19. Chapter 19

“Mickey” Ian whispers from his right.

Mickey tears his eyes away from the gigantic movie screen in front of them, feeling almost dizzy from the sharp visuals and booming sound system. It had been Karen’s idea to sit in the very front row of the theatre of course, and he was not feeling it. He was a back seat kinda guy, classrooms, bus, you name it.

He looks over at Ian, and notices his boyfriend is jiggling the still full popcorn bag towards him, encouraging him to take some more.

Mickey slides his hand in for another handful, but he just pops the kernels into his mouth one at a time afterwards, savoring the salt on his tongue as he tries to focus on the movie. Ian had pulled through on his promise of buying him a big bag of popcorn in exchange for coming on this double date, but he wasn’t feeling too hungry now anyways.

Partly because he was still mulling over the realization he had recently come to, he was falling in love with Ian, but mostly because Lip, sitting on his left side, keeps jostling against him and knocking his elbow off the armrest.

He made the mistake of glancing over once about ten minutes ago, and saw more of Lip Gallagher’s skinny dick than he ever fucking wanted to. Karen and him were practically going at it in their seats, hands jammed down each other’s pants and mouths glued together as they made obnoxious sucking noises.

Slinking down in his seat a bit uncomfortably, Mickey glances to his right as Ian laughs at a scene in the movie that he can’t even remember the name of now. There’s cars, and people, and racing. That’s about all he’s gathered so far through the numerous distractions.

Feeling desperate eyes on him, Ian finally turns to look back at him, and his face scrunches in mild disgust as he notices what Mickey is being subjected to by sitting beside Lip.

“Hey!” he hisses, leaning across Mickey’s lap to smack his brother’s arm hard as Karen lifts her face from his crotch, “Fuck off!”

Lip’s eyes slide over towards him, lips looking puffy from kissing Karen so much and a grin stretching across his face, “Done now anyways” he smirks. “Jesus Christ” Mickey whispers, glaring over at him. Nasty ass.

“Jealous?” Lip laughs, earning him annoyed looks from both his younger brother and Mickey.

Now that the impromptu public sex next to him is finally over, they all eventually sit back and refocus on the movie, but Mickey almost jumps when he feels a hand snaking towards his crotch about fifteen minutes later.

Propping his tense arm up to block the view of the two individuals on his left, he raises an eyebrow towards Ian, who seemed to think his brother’s comment was directed at him for being a prude or something.

“You don’t have to do this” Mickey mouths towards him, even as his dick twitches beneath Ian’s slowly rubbing hand.

“I want to” Ian mouths back, lips moving almost silently, and goddamn it Mickey wants that perfect warm mouth against his. Fuck Lip and fuck Karen.

He leans in towards Ian, reaching for the back of his head as they kiss, their tongues soon doing as much work as their lips are as they both fall deeper into their eager embrace. Knocking the popcorn from Ian’s lap and onto the floor accidently as he reaches for his boyfriend’s jeans without thinking, they both pull away, breathing heavily as their dark eyes refocus on each other in the dim movie theatre.

And then without a fuckin word about what he’s doing, Ian grabs his hand, firmly pulling him out of his seat and up the darkened aisle as Lip whispers loudly after them in amusement, “Get some brotha!”

Without responding to his brother’s hushed and teasing comment, Ian hurries Mickey along out of the theatre and down the carpeted hallway towards the washrooms. “Hello?” Ian asks hoarsely as they burst inside, but it appears the men’s washroom is empty.

“Ian?” Mickey mutters towards him uncertainly, but Ian just turns around to rest his hands on Mickey’s hips, kissing him harder and backing him into one of the empty stalls.

“What are you doin, hmm?” Mickey hums as Ian reaches down for his crotch again before slipping his hand down into his pants. His boyfriend’s palm is warm and slightly sweaty against his skin, cupping at him and getting him going again.

“I want to blow you” Ian pants back, and Mickey’s dark eyebrows immediately rise in surprise. They hadn’t done that yet, not even once. For some reason though, as much as he wants it, it just seems odd. “Are you…are you sure?” he asks as Ian wrenches his pants down and drops to his knees in front of him.

Ignoring his question, Ian opens his mouth and gathers Mickey’s dick into it, who’s already starting to harden rapidly. “W-woah” he gasps as Ian hoovers him, “The fuck’s gotten into you?”

God, he doesn’t want to complain though, this is like…this is like pure fucking bliss he thinks, his hand gripping through Ian’s red hair desperately as Ian practically chokes from taking him so eagerly.

He reaches up to hold the top of the stall door for support as his knees start to get weak from holding it in, but when he glances down, he sees a strange look overcoming Ian’s face. Its like all of a sudden, he’s… angry or sad or something.

“Hey” Mickey says worriedly, repeating it more firmly when Ian ignores him, “ _Hey._ Can you stop for two fuckin seconds?”

Ian pulls off from his dick, which is already starting to soften from his suspicions.

“Are you doing this because your brother made fun of you?” he demands, and the embarrassed look in Ian’s green eyes confirms what he thought.

“No it’s fine, I’ve wanted to for a long time anyways” Ian answers, determinedly reaching for it again, but Mickey stops him.

“Ian…he doesn’t mean it, he’s just being a dick because Karen’s out there and he wants to show off or whatever. You shoulda heard the way he tried to low-key grill me when I picked him up tonight. If he knew you were doing this just to prove a point, he’d be fuckin pissed”.

Ian finally slowly gets up from his knees and brushes them off, and Mickey tucks himself back into his jeans, zipping them up awkwardly as the two of them stay crammed in the small space.

“I wanted to for a long time. And I have before” Ian repeats, even as Mickey shakes his head. “Then what’s wrong?” he murmurs, reaching out to brush Ian’s red hair from his creased forehead.

Ian sighs, “I wanted to, but I was nervous to bring it up. When he said that shit about you being jealous that he got his dick sucked or whatever I was mad, so it was easier. But then I started doing it and realized this isn’t what I had pictured for me and you. Jammed in some dirty bathroom stall”.

“Yeah it’s not exactly what I pictured either” Mickey admits, even though he’s not sure what he did picture. Candles? Music? Not exactly to be honest. But not this. “Don’t get me wrong though, I’m not complaining. It was amazing. You’re amazing” he grins.

“I can still finish you” Ian offers, but Mickey shakes his head, “Nah. You’re right…lets do it right. Soon, but right”.

And right as Mickey finishes saying that and Ian smiles at him, they hear men starting to come into the bathroom talking and laughing, and he realizes the movie must have let out.

“C’mon” he winks, “Let’s go find your dumb brother and your dumb co-worker”.

Hand in hand and flipping off some guy that gives them a dirty look as he sees them holding hands, they leave the bathroom together and find Karen and Lip waiting for them in the foyer.

“You guys want to go to Patsy’s? Could go for a coffee” Lip suggests, and even though he’d still much rather split this into two separate dates, Mickey agrees with the other two on going. Ian seems to cool down during the drive anyways, and by the time they get to the little coffee house and restaurant, he’s joking around with Lip again, although they do seem to share some private conversation as they all walk up to it.

Lip slings his arm around his brother’s shoulder once they are done talking and as soon as Ian smiles, Mickey relaxes, assuming they had briefly talked about what happened, which was a relief.

It wasn’t because Mickey didn’t want to do stuff with Ian of course, if Ian told him he wanted to fuck him right here and right now he wouldn’t argue, but he doesn’t want Ian doing it because he thinks he has to. Or because he’s stressed that he’s taking too long. That would just ruin everything.

And besides, he thinks as Ian puts his arm around them when they slide into their side of the shared booth, some things are worth waiting for. His boyfriend was definitely one of them.

The waitress comes over to take their orders, and while they are waiting for their food Ian whips out his phone, taking a few pictures of them together for his snapchat story. Mickey doesn’t really get that shit, and he literally only snapchats Ian, but he takes one selfie with him anyways for his own story just because Ian seems so into it.

Karen is definitely egging his boyfriend on too, so finally he just grabs Ian around the middle, squeezing him until he bursts out laughing and Karen films it, her and Lip laughing the whole time too as they play wrestle each other in the booth.

“Look at my caption” she says, flipping her iPhone around to show them the words she had typed over the video. “Boyfriends & Best Friends”.

“So true” Ian smiles. For once since he’s fucking met her, Mickey feels a brief flash of affection towards Karen, especially because he’s 99% sure she has fuckin Trevor on her friends list, and he’d like for him to see that. Just for a visual reminder or whatever.

Halfway through their group’s shared basket of crispy fries and the burnt coffees they all ordered, Ian automatically stirring more sugar into Mickey’s after he made a face drinking it, he hears a familiar voice calling to him from the front door once it opens.

“Yo assface!”

He sighs as his sister appears at their table, only Ian greeting her with a friendly smile and a wave as he jams another fry in his mouth.

“What are you doing here?” he asks, knowing she’s probably getting a huge kick out of seeing her brother on a double date. And fuck, he can’t even blame her. Even hanging out in a group of “friends” is fucking new to him.

She shrugs as she reaches down to steal a fry. “Leslie was being a bitch, so I fucked off around and came here to get something to eat. And look, now I’ll get a ride home too. Lucky you!”

Mickey rolls his eyes, and looks up to see Lip eyeing his wildly dressed sister, and gesturing towards him in amusement, “You gonna introduce us?”

“This is Mandy, Mickey’s sister” Ian answers for him, scooting down so she can join their booth. Mandy of course takes the wordless invitation, also grabbing his coffee to have a sip from. He grunts, pushing it away from her and towards Ian to guard, who of course doesn’t realize that’s the point.

“Cheers” she grins, lifting an eyebrow slightly towards Lip afterwards, who smirks a little back. _Jesus Christ_ , Mickey thinks, if these two start fucking around, its gonna make things a whole new level of crazy. Especially considering the pissed off look on Karen’s face right now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Actually haven't decided if anything will go down between Lip/Mandy yet...we'll see :P


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A short and sweet update <3

“So, here’s the thing”.

Mickey glances up from his iPhone screen and the fucked up video clip of a Tarantula fighting a snake that he had been watching while he waited, giving Lip his very best unimpressed look from the kitchen table as Ian’s older brother once again tries to press him for details about his sister Mandy.

Ever since she had shown up uninvited and uninhibited at Patsy’s during the fucked up double date, all Lip had been doing was asking about Mandy whenever he saw Mickey.

To be fair, Mandy had done some questioning herself once they got back home together, but he felt a lot more comfortable slamming his bedroom door in his sister’s face and tuning her out than he did Ian’s brother.

He raises his dark eyebrows sharply as Lip hesitates to continue, “Yes?”

He rubs the back of his neck, “Well I kinda gave my blessings to you and Ian right? I figure the least you could do is the same for me”.

Fascinating. The guy actually looks like he believes his own bullshit.

Mickey turns in his seat to face him more directly, “First of all, I don’t need your fuckin permission to date your brother. Ian chose to date me. Second, I ain’t just tryin to fuck him. I hear Karen talk shit about you at work, so don’t pretend like you’re actually interested in getting to know Mandy”.

“I AM interested in getting to know her. Otherwise I wouldn’t be wasting my time talking to you about it” Lip answers, shrugging in innocence as he lights a cigarette. Mickey wordlessly holds his hand out for one too, and after a moment of thought, receives one.

He could play with this a bit, probably. Get a laugh out of it. And if it ended up working out, Lip probably wasn’t that much worse than most of the douchebags his sister usually went out with.

“Alright. Tell you what. You’d never know it just looking at her, but she’s a huge fan of…of theatre. Like plays and shit. Always saying she wants to go to one” Mickey lies.

_Theatre?_ _Where the fuck did that one come from_ he wonders. But just thinking about Mandy sitting and watching some dramatic theatre production while she’s dressed like some dangerous hood girl makes him smirk.

Lip’s brows furrow slightly as he glances towards him, and Mickey immediately makes his face go blank and innocent. Lip looks thoughtful in turn, and Mickey tries to hold in his grin as he finally nods.

“Alright, cool. I can find tickets or something for a local theatre group I bet” he reasons, getting up from the kitchen table.

“You do that” Mickey answers, turning his attention back to his iPhone. That Gallagher disappears up the wooden stairs and another one appears, thankfully Mickey’s favorite one.

“Hey” Ian says, bending slightly to plant a kiss on his cheek, “Sorry I made you wait, Carl took forever getting out of the shower and you would not have wanted to sit in a car with me the way I smelled before”.

“Doubt that” Mickey laughs, “Good workout today?” Ian lifts one eyebrow at him and flirtatiously lifts his arm for Mickey to feel his tensed bicep, the latter taking in a dramatic intake of air as he squeezes it that makes Ian blush and mess up his hair in return, “C’mon, let’s go”.

Mickey gets up from the kitchen table with a grin, flattening his dark hair back down with one hand and slipping his phone into one of his swim short’s pockets with the other as Ian grabs the bag he must have filled earlier with a couple towels and water bottles and shit.

They head out together towards the parked Echo, Ian commenting as Mickey starts his car’s engine with a grunt, “Can’t remember the last time I went to the beach when I didn’t have to babysit”.

“Yeah, probably cause your pale ass burns like a motherfucker” Mickey laughs, leaning over to give Ian a playful kiss while his boyfriend rolls his green eyes, both of them knowing Mickey is just as damn pale.  

They both sit in happy silence for a while as Mickey drives them to the local beach, before Ian casually mentions, “You know why I wanted to go to the beach today? Do something different with you?”

Mickey glances over at him before he takes a sharp right turn, resisting the urge to honk his horn and swear at some dumbass pedestrian walking through a green light because Ian’s tone seems to have dropped a little bit, like he’s feeling shy about something all of a sudden. Mickey recognizes these sorts of things about his boyfriend almost instantly.  

He hums as he answers, “The beach specifically? Fuck, I dunno…I thought you’d probably want to go out for a nice dinner or something to be honest. Which by the way, we can still do”.

Ian nods and bites his lip, looking down at his packed bag before he looks back up at him right as Mickey’s pulling into a parking space right against the beach with a quiet stretch of sand in front of them. Perfect. Not too many people here today.

“I packed us a sort of dinner…well, a picnic I guess. I thought we could just celebrate here” Ian answers, scratching his head a little bit.

Mickey looks over as Ian starts digging through his bag, lifting the towels to quickly show him the homemade ham and cheese sandwiches he had prepared, the plastic container of fresh California strawberries he had packed, and the beers with an icepack carefully jammed between them to keep them cool.

Mickey’s quiet for a moment and then Ian pauses too, sounding a little embarrassed before he goes on. “We can still go out though, I bought us concert tickets for next weekend just in case you weren’t into this. Lip kinda said he thought a picnic might be stupid”.

Mickey shakes his head in disbelief, reminding himself to clock Lip and clearing his throat for a second before he speaks.

“You did all this for me?”

Ian nods, a shy smile on his face. “It’s our one-month Mickey. And it’s been one of the happiest ones of my life… I wanted to show you that”.

Fuck. Mickey swallows hard, feeling the words threaten to bubble up through his lips that he had decided to keep to himself. And he thinks has a hold on them too, until Ian leans over and takes his face against his warm palm, pressing his soft lips in against his.

Mickey’s head sort of feels like some warm blanket settles over it as they kiss, but his heart is beating faster, and harder, and then they pause for just a second, flushed faces just an inch apart, and his lips are free. And they just slip out.

“Ian I’m falling in love with you”.

_Holy fuck. Holy…fuck._ He just said it.

Mickey feels like he could throw up as Ian quickly pulls back to look at him like he needs to see if he’s serious, and Mickey realizes at the same moment that his tattooed hands are shaking the tiniest bit. His entire body feels charged, like he just shot up some insane drug.

“Holy fuck” he finally mutters, taking a deep breath as Ian reaches out for his hand, rubbing his freckled thumb over the back of it. Mickey glances upwards nervously to meet his boyfriend’s gaze, relaxing a bit when he sees the look in Ian’s green eyes, and the smile on his face.

And when Ian leans in to kiss him again, whispering before he does, “I’m falling in love with you too, Mickey” his solid chest presses up against Mickey’s, and Mickey can feel how fast his boyfriend’s heart is beating too. And he knows Ian was just as scared, just as hopeful, as he was.

When they step out of the car and into the sunshine together, the smell of the summer beach hitting both of them and making them smile, the sand mixed with pebbles gritty and warm beneath their feet, and the seagulls screaming their curses above them, part of Mickey is filled with a strange and unusual sense of peace that he’s never really had before, the other part of him wants to shout at the top of his lungs that Ian Gallagher is falling in love with _him_. Him. Mickey Milkovich.

Fuck everyone that thought he didn’t deserve this. Couldn’t have this. Fuck em.

Ian Gallagher is falling in love with him. 


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is growing to have a decent amount of followers and subscribers, so I just wanted to say thank you <3 Picking up from where the other one left off, here's another chapter filled with some playful, some deep, and some sweet moments <3
> 
> *Chapter is rated Mature*

Ian blows out from between his wet lips to relieve his poor lungs as he resurfaces with a small gasp, flecks of cool lake water spraying upwards onto his already wet face as he vigorously shakes his head like a happy dog.

His playful green eyes blink through clear drops of lake water lingering on his lashes as he then treads in place for a moment, quickly catching his breath.

Across from him, Mickey swims a little less confidently, doing his best to keep up with Ian’s antics in the lake, even though he strongly prefers to stay where his feet can still touch its sandy and reassuring floor. He never learned how to properly swim growing up, and he’s only really comfortable swimming where he knows he can stand if he has to.

But Ian doesn’t seem to mind avoiding going too far out to stay with him.

“You’re like a freakin’ dolphin” Mickey comments in admiring disbelief, taking a few steps back into shallower water as Ian easily glides up beside him.

“Oh, this is nothing, get me in a pool where I can open my eyes underwater and actually see, and then I’ll really impress you” Ian answers, though he’s clearly a little proud of the compliment. He plays his fingers across the water’s surface, waiting to see what his boyfriend thinks of _that._

“If by pool, you mean society’s unflushed toilet that is the Southside public, I’ll pass” Mickey grins, laughing and choking on some water when Ian splashes water energetically at him in response.

He sends back a fast wave back in response, Ian scrunching his beautiful green eyes closed as it crashes over his head, and then he dips underwater again and disappears, Mickey laughing until he feels cold hands grabbing at him from beneath the lake’s dark surface.

His natural instinct is to just kick at fucking anything that’s invisible and grabbing at him, but he holds back because he knows its just Ian. He tries to swim away in protest but fails as Ian smoothly swims up beneath him and between his legs.

A few seconds later, and Ian is launching upwards with Mickey’s thighs resting on his strong shoulders, protestingly getting pushed upwards and out of the water as Ian stands against the lake’s bottom. Swaying slightly as he gets his balance with the extra weight, Ian’s wet red is sandwiched between Mickey’s legs, his freckled hands holding Mickey’s thighs in place, chin barely above the surface.

“Jesus Christ!” Mickey swears, trying not to wobble and fall as he grabs at Ian’s head for balance. “You don’t have to pull my hair out Mick, I got you” Ian insists, turning slowly in the water so Mickey is facing the beach instead of the endless water.

Mickey relaxes slightly but still tries to demand in his manliest tone possible, “C’mon Ian, put me the fuck down. Please”.

“Alright, alright”.

Ian lowers himself back down in the water and Mickey manages to awkwardly fall off his shoulders with a splash, but he doesn’t fail to notice the hands that immediately reach out to help pull him back to the surface faster. Ian pulls him close in his arms, pressing his wet forehead against his own for a moment before he leans in with a comforting kiss, one that makes Mickey think maybe swimming isn’t so bad.

They float for a while together afterwards, relaxing as the lake water quietly laps over their shoulders that are pale and wet, but when Mickey feels too much a fucking raisin, he kisses Ian and swims back towards the beach, Ian quickly matching his pace and then walking out of the lake beside him.

Mickey feels like his wet blue swimsuit is absolutely plastered to his alabaster skin as they walk back to their towels together, and he resists the urge to look over at Ian’s as they settle onto the dry beach, each of them stretching out on their backs and blinking upwards at the late afternoon sun. His boyfriend’s body really is a wonder. Smooth, dripping, toned in all the right places…a day at the beach has a whole new meaning to him now.

“God that sun feels good” Ian murmurs almost to himself after a while, “Spend too much time inside at Crush”.

Mickey glances over towards him, “I thought you loved your job”.

Ian shrugs as he brushes some clingy sand off his now mostly dried skin, “I do I guess. But I love spending time with you more”.

_Love._ It’s funny how just hearing the word come out of Ian’s mouth when its related to him still gives Mickey a funny feeling in his abdomen, like something wild is trying to escape. Or maybe something’s just coming home.

“Not sick of me yet?” Mickey jokes, although deep down, if he really lets himself think about it, that will always be a fear of his. That someday, Ian’s gonna look at him and see him the way everyone else always fucking has.

_Ex-criminal_ (the police), _loser_ (schoolmates), _punk_ (neighbors), _hopeless_ (teachers), _waste of space_ (parents), _waste of time_ (ex).

“Are you kidding me?” Ian smiles, rolling onto his stomach and looking over at him with shining green eyes, “Do you think I would pack a gourmet, five-star lunch like that for just anyone? I would have cut the damn crusts off too, if you wanted me to”.

“C’mere you goof” Mickey smiles, reaching over to pull Ian onto him, the other man resting like a comforting weight on his chest as they kiss.

He didn’t feel like any of those things when he was with Ian. He felt like he belonged.

His tattooed hands slowly explore his boyfriend’s smooth and curved back. He loves the feeling of the bodily warmth passing through their chests, only coming out of his comfortable reverie when he hears Ian’s stomach growl.

“Who said that?” Ian demands, looking around himself like he’s annoyed before the two of them both burst out laughing.

“Give it a minute, and mine will probably fuckin answer” Mickey grins, suddenly realizing he’s pretty damn hungry too, but when he feels a fat drop of water hit his cheek, he frowns upwards towards the darkening sky. “Shit!” Ian curses, sighing in obvious annoyance as he looks upwards at the same time, clearly feeling the drops that are beginning to fall too.

Mickey puts a tattooed hand up to cover his face a bit from the rain that’s beginning to fall more steadily now, helping Ian gather up their beach towels at the same time. They grab everything and head for the car, Ian looking down at his sagging backpack in disappointment as they throw themselves into their seats.

“Some fucking picnic…|

Mickey looks over at his boyfriend for a moment. Rained out or not, it honestly didn’t make a huge difference to him. He could eat dinner in a fucking basement with Ian and he’d be happy.

He reaches over into the backpack and pulls out the two cold beers, shoving one into Ian’s hand and clinking his own against it before he cracks it open and takes a sip.

“Ah... Cheers, to the most important fucker in my life”.

Ian looks at the bottle in his hand for a moment before a big smile breaks over his face and he clinks it back, “Cheers Mick. To the fucker who makes each day better than the last”. He digs out and passes over the homemade sandwiches, and when they are done enthusiastically eating those, they eat the strawberries he’d brought one by one, tossing the green tops out from their opened car doors and enjoying the rainy but sublime view of the beach.  

Everyone else had deserted the grey and wet beach front, but in some ways, Mickey likes it even better this way. No screaming kids, and no broads walking around in overly tight swimsuits he could definitely fucking do without seeing.

Just him and Ian, finishing off their beers, stealing glances at each other, and maybe blushing every so often. He can’t help it.

“So, this concert, who we going to see?” Mickey asks, resting one hand on the steering wheel as he looks over at his boyfriend.

The homemade lunch alone was the nicest fucking thing… he can’t believe Ian thought he might not like it.

“To be honest, I don’t really know. They’re a local band playing at Reggie’s next week, called the Last Chance or something” Ian admits, laughing a little at himself now, “I fucking panicked and got the tickets without really thinking. But they have drinks and food there too, so I figured either way we’d have a good time”.

“Course we will. Beers and wings are on me at Reggie’s by the way” Mickey says, leaning over to give him a kiss, “And Ian? Thanks for doing all this shit for me. Honestly. Don’t know how I got so goddamn lucky with you”.

“All this nice stuff you say about me…just so you know, you are stroking my already _huge_ ego” Ian says warningly, before the both of them laugh softly and lean in to kiss each other.

Mickey himself is surprised by how quickly the heat builds between them. He feels his forehead creasing and his eyes closing as he falls even fucking deeper into the intense moment, but at some point he _has_ to fucking open them again just to hazily look at the man he’s making out with and appreciate him some goddamn more.

Ian is gently biting on his bottom lip now and dragging it slightly, and fuck if that doesn’t turn him on even more. That and the fact that they are both still shirtless is just fuel on the raging fire, especially when Ian’s damp hand presses desperately against his bare chest.

“Touch me” he murmurs against Mickey’s neck as he lowers his face away, his boyfriend’s warm breath making his pale skin tingle.

Mickey almost shakes from want as he reaches down to grope blindly at Ian’s red swim shorts, groaning into Ian’s mouth uncontrollably once he finds the hard and pressing bulge with his hand.

“Fuck Ian…”

“Your hand feels so fucking good” Ian mumbles into his neck.

“My mouth would feel better I bet” Mickey pants, pulling away a bit to look into Ian’s eyes to see how he feels about it, his boyfriend’s blown pupils saying a lot as he shudders with pleasure from the rubbing.

Still, he waits for the-

“Please…fuck, please Mick”.

“Backseat” Mickey immediately answers, lunging across Ian’s lap to yank his car door shut before he reaches for his own and scrambles into the backseat with him, Ian already struggling to pull his swim shorts down. 

There’s some fumbling and then, the moment his boyfriend’s cock is free and standing between them, Mickey lets out a deep and shuddering breath.

It’s almost hard to believe Ian could be so innocent with a prize like that between his hairy legs, but goddamnit he looks perfect, holding it with one freckled hand and gripping the other into the back seat as he steadies himself for what he clearly has a lot of faith in.

Mickey gets on his knees in front of him, wedged between seats.

The rain is hammering down hard on his car’s rooftop, but he still hears the sharp intake of breath from Ian as he slowly licks up his boyfriend’s sturdy length for the first time, his tongue salivating from the salty precum Ian is already starting to dribble.

He’s not super accustomed to giving amorous blow jobs, he never has been, but he does his fucking best to get as much of Ian into his mouth and throat as he can, and he’s definitely not getting any complaints. Ian’s hand fists through his dark hair, his pale thighs spread in the backseat as he helps lower Mickey’s head down between them over and over again, both of them groaning from shared pleasure.

Mickey doesn’t even give a shit about the embarrassing wet suctioning sounds escaping from the corners of his mouth, he just strokes his tongue along the underside of Ian’s shaft even more firmly as he blows him, fucking living for the small and breathy moans that he hears every so often.

He could come just from listening to that perfect soundtrack.

And then he feels Ian’s trembling thighs tensing beneath his wide-spread hands, and a quick shudder comes over them before Ian fills his mouth with a thick and salty warmth that he swallows down, practically panting when he pulls off.

“Shit, sorry. I’m supposed to say when I…I always forget…” Ian is just rambling now, his slowly softening cock red and glistening from saliva as Mickey pants upwards at him, a huge smile forming on his face.

“Ian?”

“Yeah?”

“Shut up”.

Mickey stretches upwards to kiss Ian hard, who immediately falls into it, reaching for his boyfriend’s still straining swim shorts at the same time.

“You sure this is how you want to do it?” Mickey asks softly, running his hand through Ian’s damp red hair, even though he already knows. And God knows he wants it.

“This is exactly how I want to do it” Ian answers huskily, so Mickey helps him to pull his trunks down enough to pull his hard dick out, arching his back a bit as he rearranges himself in the slightly cramped backseat.

The rolled-up car back seat window feels cold against the back of his head, but he practically has to close his eyes in fucking bliss as he feels Ian’s warm wet mouth lower over him, no hesitation this time. He uses one firm hand to stroke the base that he can’t fit in his mouth, and the other creeps down to cup Mickey’s already tightening balls.

“I’m already so turned on from blowing you” he whispers, his pale cheeks feeling hot and flushed as the blood in his body practically churns.

_Goddamit he’d almost forgotten how fucking good this feels._

“I love it” comes muffled but sincere from his tensed lap as Ian lifts himself just slightly to answer, before returning to his dick with the same gusto as before, and then Mickey’s spine is tingling, his back arching as he breathes out sharply, gritting his teeth together.

“Gonne cum” he manages to grunt.

Ian keeps up his same rhythmic movements, and Mickey almost cries out with relief when it happens. His chest is rising and falling so fast as he breathes out hard, overcome with the new weird and almost fucking emotional aspect to sex that he hadn’t been familiar with before.

Ian comes up from his lap after he swallows, and with Mickey still leaning into one corner, arm splayed out over the backrest for support, Ian leans up against him, soft cheek pressing to his bare chest before he kisses it gently.

Mickey automatically curls his arm downwards around Ian to hold him in place as the two of them sit there together, their heart rates eventually beginning to slow, even though it still feels like they are beating so hard.

And then through the raindrops, and through the sound of the waves crashing in the near distance with the wind, Mickey hears Ian’s voice, warm and content.

“Happy anniversary Mickey”.

Mickey kisses the top of his boyfriend’s warm red head, hoping he can remember this perfect day for the rest of his life.

“Happy anniversary Ian”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to Raine_on_me for the rained out picnic suggestion! I hope I did it justice!
> 
> I can't believe I managed to post two days in a row lol. I'd like to say I can keep that up right now but I won't lie to you guys. Stay tuned! xo


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lighter chapter with the family!   
> *Pls excuse the language if you find it offensive, but this is still based on the Shameless characters :P

  

Mickey stares at his scratched iPhone screen, blue eyes narrowed in jealous annoyance at the comments Trevor left on his boyfriend’s new profile picture. Sure, Trevor might be trying to be more fucking _subtle_ about it now, but Mickey wasn’t a dumbass and he knew what the prick was doing.

Flirting.

He was always saying that sort of shit to Ian at work too. Just innocent enough so that Mickey couldn’t say anything, but pointed enough so that he got the message. At first he types out “Fuck off” as a reply to Trevor’s comment, but then quickly backspaces, knowing that would probably cause trouble for Ian, who had already responded anyways.

No. He can do this in a way that doesn’t start shit for Ian to deal with, he’s sure of it. After a moment of intense and petty thought he sends Trevor a friend request, and as soon as he accepts it a couple minutes later Mickey re-shares Ian’s photo, adding his own little comment that he knows Trevor will see, making it clear _once again_ that his boyfriend ain’t fuckin available.

He grins at Ian’s almost immediate and loving reply that pops up as a notification and then his iPhone starts ringing, pretty much immediately distracting him from why he was even annoyed in the first place.

Mickey can hear the smile in his boyfriend’s voice when he picks up, and he can hear all the fucking Gallagher chatter in the background too, a soundtrack he’s pretty much gotten used to. “You at the circus?” he chuckles, swiping his thumb across his bottom lip as he sits down on the edge of his bed.

“I’m at home in the kitchen, so pretty much” Ian answers rather seriously, his voice quickly breaking into amusement before he starts talking again, “Enjoy the spam likes you’ll get on that picture from my family by the way, Fiona and V are already over here falling in love with you”.

Mickey’s pale cheeks turn warm as he blushes, shaking his head to himself. Part of him can’t believe he pulled that stupid shit on social media like some friggin chick in high school, part of him is just glad he thought of it. And he’s not just marking his territory or anything either, he _is_ damn lucky to have Ian and he knows it.

That perfect picture of him is already the new background on his phone.

“He says nothing!” he hears Ian shout to someone behind him, female laughter in response.

“The fuck am I supposed to say to that?” Mickey questions into the phone, starting to laugh at himself too. He remembers the day when his ex wouldn’t even try and introduce him to his family, he was so certain they would hate him.

Now, Ian’s family apparently loves him.

“You’re supposed to say you’re coming over. We’re doing hotdogs for lunch” Ian answers cheerfully. After hearing some muffled agreement in the background, Mickey smiles.

“I’m comin over”.

Leaving his messy bedroom after he hangs up the phone, he runs directly into a very excited looking Mandy in the hallway, who immediately punches him in the arm. “You didn’t even ask my advice for that one. And that’s exactly what I would have told you to do!”

“Huh?” Mickey rubs his exposed arm distractedly as he walks down the hallway to grab his running shoes and his car keys, his younger sister tagging along after him like a puppy, and still talking all the way.

“Fucking Trevor! Listen I know you don’t want to lose control and beat his ass, but if he does something like that, he’s pretty much asking for it”.

He shakes his head as he remembers why he was annoyed again. It seems fucking stupid to care about something like that. It’s not like Ian flirted back. It’s not like Trevor was getting invited over for lunch with his family. But still…

“I dunno. Hopefully he got the message from that post. If I punch Ian’s employee’s lights out, I won’t be allowed to hang around Crush anymore”.

She shrugs, not understanding the very real problem that is him getting to spend less time with Ian. He also doesn’t want to jeopardize Ian’s chances at eventually becoming manager, knowing that’s his boyfriend’s eventual goal.

Some things you just have to grin and bear until they fuck off. Trevor is apparently one them.

“Where are you going?” Mandy asks, snapping her gum in her mouth as they both pause at the doorway.

“Ian’s place for lunch. He said they’re doing hotdogs or whatever” he answers, jamming two fingers inside the heel of his worn-out shoe as he tries to shove his foot in without undoing any laces.

“Am I invited too?” she asks slowly, a slightly strange look coming over her face. Mickey pauses. Not like her and Ian were that close… he hesitates in confusion before he answers, “No...? Why would you ask that?”

Mandy looks back up at him and shakes her head darkly, “I don’t know. Ian’s brother Lip ran into me the other day on the sidewalk when I went out to get smokes, was acting like a total fucking weirdo. Telling me about taking me to see Macbeth or something…I had no idea who the fuck that is, so I said no”.

“What it is” Mickey responds distractedly, clutching his car keys in his hand impatiently. _Where the fuck are his sunglasses?_

“What?” she asks blankly.

Mickey sighs, glancing towards the front door and giving up on eye wear. Hot dogs only take so long to boil. “What it is. It’s a fucking play, Mandy”.

Her dark-lined eyes widen, “Oh my God! So he was asking me on a date? Why the…why would he try to take me to a fucking play? This is the South Side! Wait, is he a virgin too?” she laughs, covering her mouth with her hand in amusement as she tries to put it all together.

Mickey briefly considers telling her he was just fucking with the dude and that he _might_ have had something to do with that date suggestion… but nah, he can explain that later.

He opens the front door, “Mandy, I honestly don’t have time for your fuckin questions right now. Go with the guy, don’t go with the guy, I don’t give a shit. See ya later”.

Following Ian’s text instructions to just walk around outside to the back of the house, he hears the talking, laughter and the sizzling of cheap meat on a barbecue before he even sees anyone. But the second he rounds the corner he hears a familiar voice calling out his name through the others, the one that never ceases to make butterflies do stupid flips in his stomach.

Lifting a tattooed hand lamely in hello as everyone else turns to yell hi to him too, Mickey apologizes as he joins the group standing near the barbecue, Ian, Fiona, and Jimmy. “Hey, thanks for the invite. Sorry I didn’t bring anything this time” he breathes, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. _Should he have fucking brought something?_ Wouldn’t have killed him to grab a bag of chips before he came over or something. Fuck.

“Like we need more ketchup or mustard in this house. Happy to have you Mickey” Fiona answers, smiling even though she keeps her eyes on the grill while Jimmy reaches around her to try and prod the hotdogs into place. She smacks his hand away and laughs.

Mickey nods, and Ian leans in to whisper in his ear, leading him away a few steps from the others, “You did bring something. You brought…those buns” he mumbles happily. After a brief squeeze in his lower region, Mickey’s dark eyebrows raise in surprise and he turns to look at Ian, now noticing the almost empty beer in his boyfriend’s freckled hand. “You flirting with me?” he asks, pretending like he’s shocked.

Ian laughs at his playful tone, and Mickey can tell he’s probably had a few beers already. He’s not fuckin drunk, not even close, but he’s definitely a little loose and happy. Kinda cute seeing him this way. “I don’t what’s worse, that or the proud cock line you pulled the first day I met you” he grins, resisting the urge to kiss the grinning redhead leaning on his shoulder.

“I can do better. We’re having hotdogs for lunch Mickey. Hotdogs. Just imagine the wiener jokes I’ll come up with”.

Still clutching his beer in one hand, Ian spans both his hands in the air like he’s talking about something absolutely fucking magical, and Mickey finally shakes his dark head, giving up the useless fight. He kisses Ian’s grinning mouth, his lips cool and tasting like a light beer, but keeps it quick, remembering he’s surrounded by his boyfriend’s family.

“Hey you. Prince Charming”.

Mickey turns to see V now approaching him, her hands on her hips as she frowns towards him, “Tell me how to get my man to post about me like that. Last comment I got was ‘those boooobbbbbssss’ from Kev, and that was two months ago” she complains, “I spent two hours doing my hair that day”.

“That shit’s plenty romantic V!” Kev calls out in response from the barbecue, helping Jimmy stuff cooked hotdogs into buns and passing them out to the waiting kids first.

Mickey watches as Carl growls at Debbie to get the first plate and tries not to laugh. It’s the kind of shit he would have pulled as a kid.  “Well, if it makes you feel better V, I just made a joke about Mickey’s ass” Ian admits to his sister’s friend in a low voice, “Might have even been related to buns”.

V rolls her brown eyes before she takes off to grab her plate of food, but Mickey blushes like an idiot anyways as he slowly follows her to get his own.

Ian’s never really talked about his ass all too much, but he’s also never really gotten a real bare view of it before. He can’t help but wonder what that’s eventually gonna be like…

“Yo, Mickey”.

As soon as Mickey gets his hands on a ketchup and relish covered hotdog, he sees Lip Gallagher jogging down the steps from the house towards him and he tries to quickly avert his eyes. Of course, he’s currently standing in a fenced in backyard, so it’s not like he could pretend he didn’t see or hear the dude.

“Hey” Lip says again, panting slightly as he arrives at his side and hands him a beer, “I wanted to ask you man, did your sister Mandy say anything about me?”

“Uh…” Mickey hesitates, glancing at the cold beer that’s now in his hand. He’s gotta owe the dude something…. “She might have mentioned you asking her out to see Macbeth” he admits. “Yeah, she sorta said no to that one” Lip says, scratching his head in confusion as Ian starts to approach them with another hotdog, “Not sure what I did wrong. Could you maybe put in a good word for me?” he adds hopefully.

Jesus. For the life of him Mickey can’t imagine why this guy is making an idiot out of himself over his crazy sister, but at the same time… he’s a little sympathetic for being a fool over someone. He kinda gets that shit now. “I’ll talk to her” he promises, “But what about Karen or whatever?”

“She’s…she’s Karen. You know? Fun to fuck around with, but she doesn’t really give a shit about me. Wouldn’t mind having an actual girlfriend” Lip explains, or at least tries to.

Lip Gallagher really doesn’t seem like he knows what he fucking wants in Mickey’s opinion, but he nods his understanding.

Ian had apparently been close enough to hear the last part of the conversation though, and he shakes his red head warningly. “I’m telling you Lip, dating you or not, Karen doesn’t want Mandy going anywhere near you. No offence to your sister Mickey, I think she’s great, but Karen will go psycho on her if she feels like it”.

While Lip grimaces in anticipation of this possible outcome, Mickey just laughs.

“You don’t know my sister til you fought my sister. She can hold her ground. But you fuck with her, and you’ll deal with me, got it?” His tone changes a little despite his attempt to try and keep it light, but both his boyfriend and his older brother nod their understanding. In this neighborhood, you look out for your family. No one else will.

“What’s she up to today?” Ian asks, through cheeks stuffed with hotdog, “She wanna come over? We got a dozen dogs left over still”. Lip perks up in interest at the mention of Mandy coming over and Mickey pulls out his phone, texting his sister the address and to get her ass over for some lunch.

“I’ll go wait on the porch for her” Lip offers, taking out a fresh cigarette before he disappears around the side of the house.

As soon as he’s gone, Mickey is about to lean in and kiss Ian after reading the new, soft look in his green eyes easily… but a firm tug at his jeans stops him before their lips connect.

Glancing behind himself, he sees Ian’s younger brother Carl standing there with a worn out old glove and a ball, “You any good at catch?” he asks doubtfully, smacking the ball against his palm. “Carl, he’s eating” Ian answers for him, but Mickey shakes his head, jamming the rest of his hotdog in his mouth to finish it. He gulps it down and answers, “Better at throwing but I’ll give it a shot”.

Jesus, he hasn’t tossed a baseball around in years. His dad screaming at him for not catching the ball properly every single time wasn’t the most pleasant memory, and sort of ruined sports for him in long run. But at the same time, he still wants Ian’s family to like him, and this is the first time any of the kids have shown even the slightest fucking interest in him.

Putting his half empty beer bottle down, he follows Carl and Ian towards the back of the yard, where they take turns tossing the ball to each other, Carl eventually deciding to just be what he calls “a monkey in the middle” and blocking each throw they make. Ian’s much more comfortable shoving him away or elbowing him, but Mickey usually just jumps a bit to keep it out of his reach. Annoyingly, he’s not much taller than the kid.

He’s got his tattooed hands out and stretched slightly upwards, waiting for Ian to make his next easy throw as Carl comes running towards him to block it, when he suddenly feels a mild blow to the back of the head.

“Ow! What the fuck?” he demands, turning to stare at Mandy in annoyance as he sees who it is.

“You told him I liked theatre? Why the fuck would you say something retarded like that?” she huffs back, raising her dark eyebrows as he does the exact same thing back, “It was a fuckin joke! Calm down!” he grumbles, turning to shake his head at Lip, “It was a joke man, sorry”.

“Asshole” Lip laughs, clearly much less bothered by the whole thing, “It’s fine, we’re going out to see a movie later, which apparently she’s a lot more into”. “Yeah, real performance critic over here” Mickey says sarcastically, automatically stepping away when his sister raises his hand again. She punches him jokingly in the stomach, a lot more lightly this time, and laughs, “You’re such a dick”.

“Likewise” he drawls, as they exchange sibling grins. A voice then interrupts the group conversation, “Hey guys!”

The five of them look up towards the front porch, seeing Fiona’s boyfriend Jimmy standing there with a disk raised in his hand, “Any of you want to play the new Call of Duty?”

A quick glance around at each other and they are all in apparent agreement, Carl already racing ahead of them to take the first turn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm thinking a teams based game of paintball date next? ;) Could be fun.   
> Also, will Lip and Mandy end up dating?  
> Will Lip change his playboy ways for her?  
> Who knows...this is a fluff world after all...


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I miss Mickey today. Well, everyday. But especially today. Here's my break from essay writing ~

“C’mon Ian”, Mickey pushes over the live music. He slides the plastic weaved basket lined with checkered red and white paper over towards his boyfriend with an encouraging grin, tipping his head towards the impressive remaining pile of chicken wings.

“Ugh, stop” Ian moans in a low monotone, wiping his BBQ sauce covered fingers off on a wet-nap before he spreads his clean hands out over his still flat belly like he’s about to burst, “There’s like a pound of wings left in there, and I already ate three of them”.

Mickey laughs. Reggie’s small and grungy concert hall is packed tonight, not really because of the semi-decent local band playing that they happened to have tickets for, Last Chance, but rather because Reggie’s serves fucking fantastic chicken wings in the seated area upstairs for half-off on Fridays.

Ian was right. If there’s chicken wings and beer, you’re bound to have a good time.

“If you want, we can lie the next time we go to the gym and say you gained three pounds of muscle instead of three pounds of chicken wings. I won’t tell a fuckin soul, promise” Mickey deadpans, before winking as he grabs another wing from the basket for himself and starts eating again.

Full or not, he’d be damned if he left chicken wings go to waste. Course, he could always bring the leftover back for Mandy.

“Good plan. I like it” Ian laughs, reaching out for his second bottle of beer again.

They both watch the band playing below and across the concert hall from them for a few more minutes before Ian pushes back his chair and stands up, “I gotta go take a piss. Be right back”. He pauses as he shuffles past Mickey to kiss the top of his head quickly, who can’t help but smile at the gesture.

He drums his tattooed fingers on the table they are sitting at while he waits for Ian to come back. The band his boyfriend had panicked and got them tickets to see for their one month wasn’t actually that bad overall he felt, but the sound in the concert hall’s a little shitty, so he can’t really understand everything they are saying. Maybe he’d like them more if he did.

A voice near his head grabs his attention away from the band anyways, “Excuse me?”

Mickey turns to see one of the bar servers at his elbow, “Yeah?” he asks, raising his voice a bit over the live music. He frowns as a foamy glass of beer is offered out to him. He shakes his head and raises an eyebrow, “I didn’t order this, so I ain’t payin for it”.

“No, a guy stopped at the bar and asked me to bring it you. It’s already paid for” the server answers, holding it out again.

Mickey shakes his dark head and smiles as he realizes what must be happening. Ian was such a fucking goof, sending him a drink like that. “Tell him I said thanks, and to get his ass over here” he laughs, handing the guy a small tip after he takes the beer.

“Will do” the server promises.

Last Chance starts a new, more upbeat song as Mickey takes a sip of the beer. He’s surprised Ian didn’t order what he was already drinking, it’s actually more hoppy and bitter than what he’s used to. It’s alright though. Beer’s beer.

He feels a hand press down gently on his shoulder from behind and turns to grin at Ian for the cheesy gesture, but sees a stranger standing there instead, immediately stiffening. “Can I fuckin help you?” he asks, pushing the hand off his shoulder. He doesn’t like that shit, people touching him when there’s no goddamn reason to.

Right as the guy opens his mouth to respond, Ian shows up, excusing himself as he shuffles past both of them and back into his seat, “Line took forever!”

Quickly noticing their guest however, Ian joins Mickey in staring at the dude that’s still standing behind him with his hands on the back of his chair, apparently relaxed as hell. “Yeah, I sent you the drink. Name’s Tom. Heard you wanted me to get my ass over here” he laughs, stroking his short dark beard, “And I like a man who’s as forward as I am”.

Fuck.

“Excuse me?” Ian asks, his normally friendly and bright smile disappearing as his stare hardens towards the guy.

Shit.

Mickey shakes his head emphatically, first addressing the stupid drink guy, and then a visibly irritated Ian. “Nah man, fuck, I thought my boyfriend sent it as a joke or I wouldn’t have taken it. Ian, I honestly thought it was from you”.

Ian seems to believe him, but he doesn’t back down either, standing up from his seat as he snaps at the dude still standing directly behind Mickey, looking like he’s not planning on going anywhere just yet.  “Yeah, no, my question is why you bought him a drink in the first place. Are you blind? Or just fucking stupid? Because clearly you would have seen I was sitting here with him a few minutes ago” he demands, “And somehow you’re still standing here now”.

Mickey takes a drink of his beer, and then another. Fuck this is…kinda hot.  

“Jesus, calm down” the guy answers, clearly unimpressed by Ian’s protective attitude, “You sure though man?” the shit disturber asks, turning back towards Mickey once more before he starts to actually retreat, “We could share a few more drinks back at the bar”.

Ian practically growls at him, “He’s taken. Beat it”.

_Is it getting hotter in here? Fuck it’s hot in this place_ , Mickey thinks. He watches the guy disappear back through the crowd and then turns to Ian in disbelief, “I feel like I just watched myself telling someone to fuck off”.

His red-headed boyfriend flushes slightly as he sits back down directly beside him, scooting his chair closer. “Sorry if I embarrassed you” he says sheepishly, “That just really pissed me off. I’m right fucking here and he thinks you’d ditch me for a fucking beer”.

“Yeah, its ridiculous. I mean it would have to be a hard drink at least” Mickey teases, leaning forward to close the remaining gap between them as Ian rolls his green eyes at the stupid joke, “C’mere killer”.

They share a warm kiss before he finishes speaking, stroking Ian’s pale and freckled cheek while the redhead seemingly calms down from his touch alone, “Wouldn’t give a shit if he offered me the whole damn bar, nothing’s taking me from you” he promises, raising an eyebrow as if to emphasize his point.

“I’d fight anyone who tried” Ian replies, the teasing shine back in his emerald green eyes that had been flooded with jealousy just minutes before, “Hey, you wanna get out of here?” he asks, “The band’s alright but I’m getting a bit of a headache”.

“Yeah sure” Mickey gets his things together, drains the beer, and follows Ian out of the concert hall and into the fresh night air, where a gust of wind rushes down the sidewalk, making Ian roll his shoulders inside his sweater.

“You wanna go home?” Mickey asks, twirling his car keys around his finger as they approach the Echo in the parking lot. He hits the button to unlock the car doors. “Will you come inside?” Ian asks in response, opening the passenger door and pausing before he gets inside.

“Yeah of course” Mickey answers, almost laughing. When was Ian gonna learn? He could never get too much of him.

“Good, because I could use a bit of cuddle I think” Ian answers seriously, immediately reaching for the radio buttons when they get into the car and Mickey turns his keys in the ignition.

“Aw, is that what happens when you get jealous?” Mickey grins, wishing he could watch Ian’s face instead of the road right now. But he does sneak a glance, and based Ian’s emphatic nodding, that is exactly what happens.

Before they go into the Gallagher house together though after parking his car on the street, he pauses beneath the porch light, taking a moment to give Ian another long and loving kiss while they still have privacy.

He never imagined being someone that someone else was scared to lose. It made him feel…responsible. Responsible for taking care of that person.

“You’re everything to me” he murmurs as Ian presses his warm forehead against the side of his head, “Hope you know that”.

Ian nods against him comfortingly “I do Mick”.

When they step inside the house together, Ian’s older sister Fiona is working on something at the kitchen table with her boyfriend Jimmy, and Carl too, so they slip upstairs quietly after taking off their shoes, hoping to find that Ian’s shared bedroom is currently free.

The room is empty. Lip’s gotta be out.

Ian closes his bedroom door gently behind himself and Mickey so it doesn’t slam, and then walks over towards his neatly made-up bed, shrugging off his thin navy-blue zip-up hoodie before he eases himself onto the old comforter covering his mattress. After a moment, he turns to eye Mickey who’s still standing at the closed bedroom door, stuck in one of those moments where you have to make sure you remember what’s in front of you, possibly for the rest of your life. Because even in the moment, you know its that important.

“Come here” Ian says softly, and just like that Mickey’s walking towards him, climbing up onto his too-small bed, and putting his arms around Ian to hold him close.

He listens to the steady and even sound of Ian’s warm breathing against his neck, feeling his own heartbeat chime in tune with it. He never knew how much simple moments like this could mean, not until he found Ian.

“Mickey?” his boyfriend suddenly asks, his normally strong voice soft and thoughtful.  “Yeah?” he immediately answers, kissing Ian’s forehead.

The words come out all together. Not in a rush exactly, but there’s no hesitation between them. No doubt, “I don’t know if its weird telling you this. But I want you to know…I want you to be my first. And…I think I want to do it soon. Have sex with you”.

Woah. Mickey was not expecting that. He pulls his lips away from Ian’s forehead to look down at him, “That seems a little out of nowhere” he says, hoping it isn’t. The more he falls for Ian, the more he feels himself wanting to make things more physical.

Ian shakes his head firmly, “It’s not. I’ve thought about it a lot actually…. I’m falling in love with you, and I want it to be you. But not here, at my house”.

“You mean like we go to a hotel or something?” Mickey asks gently, hanging onto every word he says.

“No. I was thinking maybe your place? Your actual place? Somewhere no one will interrupt or…” Ian trails off, trying to convey what he wants without being rude.

Mickey nods his agreement. Yeah, he definitely doesn’t want his sister home or coming home while Ian’s losing his fucking virginity to him. But his apartment…fuck, he hasn’t been there since Max. And honestly, he should have just broken the lease by now. He doesn’t want to go back there anymore. But if it’s what Ian wants…

“Whatever you want. And whenever you want” he answers, already trying to figure out a way to make that work.

“Okay” Ian says happily, smiling up before he gives him a kiss, but right in the middle of it the bed door bursts open and the two of them pull apart to glance over at Lip, who looks surprised to see them laying there on the bed together.

“Sorry guys, I uh didn’t know you were in here or I would have knocked” he says, kicking off his converse. 

“It’s alright” Ian answers, both him and Mickey shifting upwards in the bed to a seated position. Nodding, Lip grabs a PlayStation controller off the nightstand and then pauses, turning to look at the two of them again. “You guys feel like gaming? Carl and Jimmy are starting up another COD marathon”.

Mickey turns to Ian, “How’s your headache?” he asks.

“Oh I lied about that. I just wanted to come home and cuddle with you” Ian answers bluntly, his competitive side clearly awakening as he gets up from the bed and takes the controller from his older brother’s hand.

Mickey laughs, his cheeks flushed with warmth on how fucking funny and adorable his boyfriend could be sometimes, “Oh alright then, guess we’re doin this”.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Family outing + Mickey Mandy bonding time + a discovery
> 
> Also, sorry I've been MIA updating this. Exams. :(

“Why are you putting fucking makeup on?” Mickey frowns, staring at his sister in mild disbelief as she leans delicately towards the smudged bathroom mirror, still applying copious amounts of dark black mascara to her already long eyelashes.

“There’s something called putting in an effort” Mandy answers, without looking away from herself in the mirror and then without skipping a beat she sassily adds, “Maybe you should try it sometime”.

“Says the girl wearing leggings as pants” Mickey shoots back, awkwardly squeezing past her to get to the toilet to take a piss, “And hurry the fuck up, we gotta pick up Ian and Lip in five”.

“You’re fucking gross” she complains as he starting pulling down his pants in warning, slamming her cheap mascara tube down on the counter and hurrying out the bathroom before he starts his stream, “And you said to wear something I could run around in and get covered in paint and not bitch about!”

That second part was true at least, Mickey can gruffly admit to himself as he flushes the toilet when he’s done, yanking his dark sweats back up over his ass and going to pull on his work boots by the front door. He’d dressed like a bum for the occasion too.“MANDY!” he hollers after he checks his phone for the second time, opening the front door and impatiently waiting for her to appear and grab her converse. He can't remember a single fucking time that she's been ready to leave when she's supposed to.

An hour later, and they are arriving in his battered black Echo with two other much more patient people at their destination, radio blaring.

“This was a great idea” Lip grins, looking out his window towards the impressive paintball facility as Mickey pulls up in the lot of Sergeant Splatter’s beside Jimmy’s Lexus and parks.

After playing a shit ton of Call of Duty together (during which it became clear just how fucking competitive most people in the Gallagher house were that day) Jimmy had suggested they all go and play paintball together. V and Ian’s sister Debbie weren’t interested at all, and opted to just stay home with Liam, but everyone else was on board and eager to go, including Mickey and his sister.

As Lip, Mandy and Ian pile out of Mickey’s car with him, they join up with Kevin, Fiona, Carl and Jimmy getting out of the Lexus parked in the next spot, all already loudly trying to agree on what arena they should play in.

Easier fucking said than done, the squabbling is already annoying as fuck.

Luckily, both Ian and Mickey shout their vote for the outdoor arena at the same time, turning to blush at each other while everyone else rolls their eyes.“Welcome to Sergeant Splatters” the bubbly teenaged attendant says as they walk up to the sign-in desk together as a group, “Do you have a reservation or…?”

“No man, are you that busy here?” Jimmy asks, glancing around the attendant towards the indoor arena. It does look packed right now, and big surprise Mickey thinks, it’s a fucking Saturday.

“Well we have a big birthday party in the indoor arena today, and a corporate team building exercise in the outdoor arena with equipment. For a party of eight, you’ll have to wait at least an hour for either. But…” he adds, seeing their disappointed faces, “We still have the outdoor forest arena. It’s the most realistic setting, and its completely free until four”.

“That’s perfect!” Fiona says happily, everyone else nodding their agreement. Mickey for one prefers the idea of the outdoor arena, less climbing around on jungle gym type shit. Easier to blend in too, and he specifically wore camo type colors, Ian and Kevin doing the same thing, probably explaining their similar votes.

They take turns paying the $25 for their admissions, except for Carl, and then suit up with the various paintball guns, protective eyewear, and colorful paintballs that Splatter’s provides, all of them already wearing clothes that were ready to be destroyed for paint.

Except for Jimmy.

Mickey looks over at his opponent’s outfit, unimpressed. He’s dressed more for a day at the fuckin South Side Mall than a paintball match.

“Okay, general rules?” Fiona asks them all, leading the rag-tag group down the dirt trail and towards the forest, red tie flags outlining the arena entrance, “I say we play for pain. If someone calls out…I don’t know, _I’m dead_ , you have to stop shooting them. But they have to retreat back to the reload station back at the office even if they still have paintballs left, and wait. If you run out of paintballs but don’t quit, you can go reload and then come back. Last team standing wins”.

“Wait, why teams?” Lip asks in surprise, looking around dubiously. “I thought we were doing one vs one. Teams you gotta watch out for everyone else on yours and it’s just…”

“Well how about teams of two?” Jimmy interrupts, “Just one person to have your back. Otherwise we’ll be here all night if we drop one by one”.

“Fair enough” Fiona agrees, “But teams will be random so we don’t have any stacked ones”. Mickey’s smile drops a little when she looks right at him and Ian. Dammit. He’d been sort of banking on having Ian as his partner.

But as long as he doesn’t wind up with Jimmy, or Kev…he’ll probably be fine. He uh, already has some experience with guns.

“We gonna draw names from a hat?” Ian asks, hiking his gun up to his shoulder in preparation, but Jimmy just shakes his head and laughs, “There’s an app for these things Ian. Hang on, let me download it and then enter everyone’s names... Okay…now we hit random…”

They all watch the animated scramble on his expensive looking phone screen before the names split into four teams of two. “Alright!” Jimmy calls, “Kevin, you’re with Carl, Fiona you’re with me, Lip and Ian you’re a team, and that leaves…Mickey and Mandy as team four”.

Everyone seemed pleased with the arrangements except for Mickey and his sister, both looking over at each other in mild annoyance. It’s not so much that they doubt each other’s skill, more that they would rather not work with each other… but fuck, what can you do.

“Alright everyone, split up! Turn and hunt in five!” Ian then yells out, and Mickey thinks he m _ight_ just get a kiss before they all run away from each other, but playful fire is already shining in Ian’s green eyes, and the competition is fuckin on as he goes jogging off in one direction with Lip tagging close behind him, already laughing.

“C’mon” Mickey mutters to Mandy, picking a path away from the other teams entering the forest. They jog lightly for a bit across the uneven forest floor, but give themselves the last two minutes or so to just hunker down behind a rise in the earth, disguised pretty well behind that and some rocks and shit.

Readjusting his scratched plastic eye cover, Mickey turns to look over at Mandy, both of them giving each other a brief nod in agreeance before they lift their heads slightly, scanning the forest floor in front of them. “See em?” Mandy breathes out, keeping her head mostly ducked down.

“Nah” he answers in a low whisper, “Hear em though”. Some idiot is crashing through the goddamn trees not far away, and it’s getting a lot louder. Mandy quickly shoves his shoulder and he turns to aim his gun in the direction she’s pointing, both of them letting paintballs fly as soon as Kevin comes into their sights, like some dumb bear crashing through the woods looking for honey.

“Ah fuck!” Kevin screams in pain as blue and red paint starts to splatter across his body, “Where the hell is that coming from? Carl!”

Laughing, Mickey grabs Mandy’s arm to pull her away from their hiding place as the aggressive kid comes bursting out from his left side to provide backup, peppering them with painful bullets that explode on impact with bright yellow paint, both of them swearing the entire time as they make their getaway. Good thing Carl is apparently trigger happy, because he runs out of paint balls fast, yelling to Kevin he needs to go reload from back in the distance while they both keep running ahead.

Stalking through the forest more quietly once Carl and Kevin’s overly loud voices are gone, Mickey follows his grim-faced sister, who actually isn’t the worst partner to be stuck with, he realizes. She moves quietly, and she’s a pretty thin target for the others to try and hit. Also, she’s tough as fuck.

She’s a Milkovich.

A cheesy war cry makes both of them immediately snap around to look behind themselves, and they quickly see an already multi-colored paint splattered Fiona and Jimmy leaping over roots and small rocks towards them in all out attack.

“Shit, tree!” Mickey yells, him and his sister both splitting up to grab cover as they aim back at the two of them. Jimmy almost immediately freaks out and drops his gun like a pussy as his hands and knees get peppered, “Fuck that hurts!”

Fiona keeps coming, but luckily most of her shots miss, and she has to stop and catch her breath because she’s laughing so hard at her boyfriend moaning and complaining so much.

Jimmy and Fiona aren’t even back up and running at them before Carl shows up again behind them and starts shooting at Fiona, so Mickey and Mandy use the chance to slip away, creeping further East into the forest. Neither of them will admit it, but they are both looking for one person each in particular….to fight or what, they aren’t sure.

Their next attacker is silent, and they both drop to their bellies in the dirt and grass, glancing wildly around as they both shout trying to figure out where its coming from. And then… “I see you asshole!” Mandy shouts, firing in a single direction for a minute until she swears lowly, tipping her gun sideways, “Fuck, I’m out”.

Lip comes out from behind the tree she was aiming at, “Hello beautiful” he says with a certain smirk, aiming right at her and then at Mickey without firing. Mickey rolls his eyes as his sister blushes like a little kid, not lowering his gun for a second.

 “Mandy go reload. I’ll cover him”.

The second his sister disappears into the trees, Lip jumps back into the game, and Mickey swears as he steps back to get better cover, absorbing each painful shot Lip sends his way but a getting a few solid ones in himself. Unlike most of the other players, he knows how to make his ammo last.

He stops hearing shots after a while. Raising an eyebrow as he glances around the tree he’s using for cover, he sees Lip is gone, probably having taken off while he was regaining his breath. Maybe he ran out of paintballs…maybe the pain was getting to him.

Mickey shrugs and begins to move again, but he halts and listens sharply when he hears a loud yelp of pain come from Ian. He darts his head around wildly until he finds the direction its coming from, and then he’s dashing through the trees like a madman, stealth going out the fucking window until he finds Ian pinned in a shitty place with no cover by Jimmy.

Without thinking twice, he aims and fires at Jimmy repeatedly at the same time Ian does, while Jimmy does a ridiculous fucking dance, shouting in pain, “You two aren’t on the same team!”

“Course we are” Mickey grins with raised eyebrows, keeping fire until Jimmy drops his gun, “I’m out! I’m fucking done! I’m dead!” he shouts.

“Leave the paintballs” Ian yells back, spitting to the grass. He’s absolutely covered in paint, like a toddler declared war on him during art class.

Jimmy slowly dumps the paintballs out onto the grass from his gun and then shoots them both an annoyed look before he takes off, and then Ian and Mickey stand there for a moment, eyeing each other.

“Didn’t ask you to help” Ian says warily, still in war mode. Micky tries to keep the grin off his face. Such a serious fuckin ginger. 

“I know” he finally answers, before adding a little more darkly, “Just wanted to get you myself”.

Ian tips his chin upwards, challenging him with that and his expression. “Is that so? Shoot me then”.

Mickey cocks his eyebrow, lifting his gun and squinting like he’s gonna, but not actually pulling the trigger. Ian starts to confidently walk towards him, covered in multicolored paint, panting, his red hair a mess. Mickey feels himself lowering the gun more and more, and then Ian’s dropping his right to the ground, backing Mickey up against a tree and slamming his mouth against his.

Fuck paintball. Mickey kisses him back eagerly, their still wet paint colors mixing on their skin and clothes where they touch, hands roaming freely. “We’re the last two teams you know” Ian tells him after a while breathlessly, stepping back. “Kevin quit first for his, Jimmy quit just now”.

“I really don’t care about the game anymore” Mickey admits blatantly, wiping his nose off on his arm after he sniffs and just getting more paint on it in the process. “Fuck. I feel like a Pollock painting” he grumbles.

“I find it incredibly sexy that you know what that is” Ian laughs, reaching down for his free hand while he holds his gun in the other, “But you know what…I think this look works for you”.

“Fuck off” Mickey laughs, “Come on…let’s find the other two. Tell em we called a truce”.

Still carrying their lowered guns, they walk through the forest together quietly, keeping alert just in case. They figure that it probably doesn’t matter if they run into Mandy or Lip, their tryst will break their teams anyways and they’ll probably get shot at it just for the hell of it.

Getting close to the forest limits, Ian suddenly puts out an arm to stop him, and Mickey immediately lifts his gun, blue eyes glancing the direction Ian’s silently gesturing towards.

But instead of seeing a paintball target, he sees a completely different, unexpected sight.

Lip Gallagher, with his back leaning casually against one of the trees and Mickey’s sister’s forehead pressed to his, his hands holding Mandy’s cheeks gently as they kiss with their eyes closed, guns and teams completely forgotten.

 ------

Just for reference this is a Jackson Pollock style painting :P all paint splatter 


	25. Chapter 25

“I don’t understand why you give a shit all of a sudden. You didn’t used to care who I dated, or fucked” Mandy says calmly, raising her dark eyebrows at him pointedly as they sit across the dinner table from each other later that same night. They are both picking over a tuna casserole Mickey threw together in agitation when they got back from Sergeant Splatter’s.  

Lowering his fork, Mickey raises his sharp and severe looking eyebrows right back at his sister. First of all, that’s not entirely fucking true. He cared if they treated her like shit, and he’d swoop in like a bat out of hell if he _ever_ heard about it and send them fucking packing. But this was different. Really fucking different. After seeing it at the paintball game in person, it just feels weird…

“He’s Ian’s brother” he says firmly, avoiding her eyes again. For whatever reason, even though he started it, this is one conversation he’d rather not have. He should have never told Lip it was okay.

Mandy flicks her Marilyn Monroe lighter on in front of the cigarette she’s resting between her dark red lips, her answer coming out muffled around the filter, “Yeah so?”  He reaches across the table to snatch the smoke away from her in response, taking a sharp drag for himself as she flips him off and grabs another cigarette from the pack resting on the table.

“Alright. Say you date. And then you fuckin break up. You think that shit’s not gonna be awkward for me?” he demands, adding another serious point in afterthought, “I already told the guy I’d fuck him up if he hurt you”.

He wonders what exactly Ian would think or do if he beat the shit out of his older brother. Something he’d rather not find out. Because how the fuck was he supposed to choose between his sister’s “honor” and his boyfriend’s family?

Not like Mandy had anyone else looking out for her, but he’d be damned if her stupid ass got him into a fight with Ian.

Mandy just looks confused at first by his argument, “Why the fuck would it be awkward?” she asks, but then she quickly catches on to something lingering beneath the lines of what he’s already carefully said with one palm on the table, and the other hand still holding a cigarette to his tense lips.

“Oh my god! Are you thinking of like holidays and shit already? Family dinners? You’ve been together what, like two friggin months?” she asks with a disbelieving laugh, looking at him like he’s crazy. Mickey’s normally pale cheeks turn pink, his sister making him realize exactly why he was overreacting before he even knew why himself.

“Fuck off” he mutters, reaching for his beer to avoid saying anything else. His eyes are looking firmly down at the table’s worn surface and his half empty plate, but Mandy keeps hers locked on his face, antagonizing him a little more, “You’re thinking way too far ahead assface. And I’ll try and keep things quiet when Lip’s over and we bang, but I’m not making any solid promises”.

“You’re gross” he answers with a grimace, still a little embarrassed. So maybe he was thinking ahead with Ian. Was that such a bad thing? Such a fucking crime?

“You’re jealous that I’m getting laid and you’re not. Move back to your apartment if you don’t like it” she quips back.

A range of thought immediately flashes through Mickey’s mind all at once at the mention of his abandoned bachelor pad, leaving him looking worried.

“What?” Mandy asks, frowning at his suddenly changed expression, “I’m just joking”.

He waves his hand off at her concern, forgetting about Lip and his dumb sister as something more important enters his mind again.

“Nah it’s just…” he starts to admit reluctantly, “Me and Ian are actually gonna do it, soon. But he wants it to be at my place and it’s just…. I don’t want to run into Max. You shoulda seen how jealous Ian got when some dude hit on me at a concert the other week. It was intense”.

“And you think seeing your ex will what? Make him not want to sleep with you anymore? Ruin everything?” Mandy says, the amusement in her voice barely hidden as she swipes his beer from the table for a swig between puffs of her dying cigarette.

He glares at her, cracking his knuckles as he thinks about that new possibility, stressing himself out even more. “I don’t fucking know. I just don’t want to see him, either way. Dude’s a fucking asshole”.

She pauses and then shrugs, her silver nose ring glinting as she finally stubs her cigarette out. “Well then I have some good news for you, brother. Max is gone. He’s visiting his family in Australia right now, and from the photo of his suitcases he posted, I’d say he’ll be there for a while”.

Mickey just about chokes on this new piece of knowledge, “What the…how do you?” he demands, immediately unclenching his fists.

“I still have him on Facebook. I thought you did too” she says in surprise, not understanding the big deal. But for Mickey, this is a _huge_ fucking relief. “Fuck no, I deleted him a few days after I started talking to Ian” he scoffs, “I don’t want to see him again, talk to him, anything”.

“Well then, he’s not there and you’ve got nothing to bitch about. Lip included” she answers, blowing some smoke out coolly as Mickey now happily gets up from the table to go change into his janitorial uniform. He’s got a shift at the hospital from 8pm to 2 am, and if he doesn’t get a move on it, he’ll be late. Not like there’s anyone really checking that shit, but he still doesn’t want to risk getting fired for something stupid. A past record like his makes it a little harder to get a decent job.

He’s assigned to the second floor of the hospital on tonight’s schedule, with a lot of the rooms being surgical ones, so although they require more work, at least the floor is pretty much empty, leaving him to his own thoughts. Wearing plastic gloves and a cotton mask, he goes from one room to the next on his clipboard list, wiping every surface down with strong cleaning chemicals and then mopping the floors firmly with the same diluted solution.

He’s so used to his nightly boring routine he does it almost methodically, but when he leaves room 218 and shuts the door behind himself, he sees a grown ass man walking down the hallway away from him, hood pulled up over his head, and he frowns.

“Hey! You’re fuckin trespassing unless you got a visitor’s pass, and overnight rooms are upstairs bud” he calls out warningly, caught off guard by the unexpected presence, but when the person turns around with a delighted grin spread across his familiar face, Mickey almost laughs.  

“The fuck are you doing here man?” he asks in surprise as Ian lowers his hood, walking towards him happily and exclaiming with his hands spread wide, “I’ve been walking around the hospital looking for you for over an hour!”

“You didn’t think of maybe texting me?” Mickey smirks, pulling down his mask and dropping it and his soiled plastic gloves into the garbage bin on his trolley so his hands are free to touch Ian.

“I wanted to surprise you. Here” Ian holds out the large Tim Horton’s coffee cup he’d been carrying towards him, and taking it, Mickey feels his lips curl into a smile as his boyfriend apologizes with a casual shrug, “It’s probably lukewarm now…like I said, took a while to find you”.

“Is it a French Vanilla?”

“How’d you know?” Ian asks, the cutest fucking expression of surprise on his face. Mickey shakes his head, falling for him just a bit harder. “C’mere”. After giving him a warm kiss, Ian smiles back at him innocently, “You visit me at work all the time, and I’ve never seen you at work before, so I thought it would be fun to come see you”.

“Uh…” Mickey gestures towards his cart, “Hate to break it to you, but mopping up vomit, piss, and blood ain’t exactly fun”.

“Well now you’ve got company” Ian answers, and he looks so damn eager, Mickey despite himself tosses him a clean set of gloves and a mask from his cart, before grabbing another set for himself, “Put these on. Chemicals are harsh man and there’s biohazards or whatever in the dirty rooms. I gotta clean two more of em before I go on break. Don’t touch anything in the rooms okay?”

“Okay” Ian agrees, immediately pulling the mask up over his nose and mouth and snapping on the gloves. And of course Mickey wants to fucking kiss him again dammit. Resisting the urge for work’s sake, he pushes the cart farther down the hallway with Ian trailing after him, once again carrying the coffee while Mickey unlocks the next room and begins to clean up the steel tables and all the counters, Ian watching the entire process like he actually gives a shit.

“Who knew you were so good at cleaning? You’d make a great house-husband Mick” he comments after a while, nodding his red head like he’s impressed.

“Fuck off” Mickey laughs, but even beneath the mask covering his boyfriend’s nose and mouth, he can tell Ian is smiling like an idiot from the way his freckled cheeks bunch, and from the playful look in his green eyes. After another forty minutes of joking around and light conversation, Mickey’s halfway through cleaning the second room when Ian then changes the subject, his voice getting somewhat light and careful.

 “So… I get the sense that you’re not exactly thrilled about Lip going after Mandy”.

Mickey tenses a bit involuntarily before glancing over towards Ian apologetically, “It’s nothing personal man. I just…”

“I get that it’s a little strange, because we’re already dating .... but you know I’d tell him to fuck off in an instant if he actually did anything to hurt her” Ian quickly says.

Mickey’s shoulders fall a bit, “You actually give a shit what I think about it?” he asks quietly, chewing on the inside of his cheek. He hadn’t really expected Ian or his brother to care in the end about what he thought.

“Yeah. I mean, he’s my brother... but I wouldn’t encourage something that made you unhappy Mick” Ian tells him sincerely.

Mickey bites his lip beneath his mask for a moment before he finally shrugs, really thinking it over before he answers so he doesn’t just give him some bullshit, “Well… I guess if he’s anything like you…she’ll be really happy being with him. That’s all I want for her” he says, honestly.

He wouldn’t admit that to literally anyone but Ian, including his younger sister, but its true. She deserves more than the shitheads she’s had to deal with in the past, just because they thought she was South Side trash.

Just because that shit happened to her, didn’t mean she deserved it.

“I think Lip actually likes her too, to be honest. I haven’t heard anything about Karen in at least a week, and now that they’ve finally kissed or whatever, he’s walking around the house looking like a love-struck dumbass” Ian offers, and Mickey finally laughs at the visual.

Maybe he’s not the worst thing for his sister…

“Alright Gallagher. You guys obviously have something in your damn genes that gets us Milkovichs’ going, I’ll give you that” Mickey admits, eyebrows raised as he opens the door and tips his head to get Ian back into the hallway, thinking if they break room is empty they can go chill there for his break. Removing his gloves and mask while Mickey does the same, Ian points down at his pants after he tosses them into the garbage bin on the trolley, “You mean these jeans or...?”

“Fuck off” Mickey laughs, playfully shoving him as they walk down the hallway together, wrestling most of the way until Mickey hears a door slamming further down the hallway and some voices quickly approaching.

“Shit” he whispers harshly, immediately freezing and dropping his headlock on Ian, “You’re not supposed to be on this floor. How the fuck did you even get in anyways? Visiting hours are over!” he asks frantically, fumbling with the keys on his belt as he shoves himself up against the door of the nearest cleaned room. “I snuck in the back entrance” Ian whispers back, looking worried, “I didn’t think it was a big deal, I’m sorry!”

“It’s fine” Mickey mumbles, getting the door open just in time and pushing Ian inside before he closes the door behind them and locks it. They move away from the door and silently wait, not moving at all, resting against one of the counters as the voices and footsteps get louder and then eventually pass, two doctors on the night shift based on the conversation.

Mickey’s thudding heart finally starts to slow and he sighs, Ian relaxing similarly. Clearly he’d been worried that he’d get Mickey into trouble, and the relief on his dimly lit face is palpable. But then after another half moment he grins, “That was kind of exciting”.

Mickey lifts his eyebrows as Ian reaches towards him, fiddling with the zipper on his uniform a bit, but not actually pulling it down.

“That turn you on?” he asks, watching Ian’s eyes sweep over him. God damn he can’t believe Ian can look at him like that sometimes. Especially considering what he’s wearing. But it doesn’t mean he doesn’t appreciate the fuck out of it.

“Would you get in trouble if we messed around in here?” Ian asks softly, fingers still on the zipper. Mickey lifts him upwards to let him sit on the counter in front of him, standing between Ian’s legs as he answers, “Yeah. But only if we got caught”.

Ian reaches downwards and finally unzips his uniform, stretching his arm downwards to slip his hand inside Mickey’s boxers. Pressing his head against Ian’s firm chest, Mickey lets out a small sound of pleasure once Ian strokes him into hardness, his thumb rubbing in small circles over the head.

“This might be the best shift I’ve ever had” he mumbles a while later, his eyes squeezing shut as Ian pulls another low groan from him. His boyfriend’s hand is like fucking magic, never failing to make him sweat.

When he finally finishes, he notices how carefully Ian takes his hand out so he doesn’t get any of his own mess on his uniform and he lets out a breathless laugh. “Does this mean I should show up at Crush and suck you off or…?”

Wiping his hand on the inside of his hoodie, Ian licks his bottom lip and tilts his head. “Maybe…” He seems shy for a moment before he looks up again, making eye contact even though its hard to see without the lights on.

“You got something else in mind?” Mickey asks, reaching up to touch Ian’s cheek. His skin is so warm and flushed, he can’t help but lean forward to touch his lips to it, but Ian moves to meet them with his mouth instead.

Halfway through the kiss he mumbles into Mickey’s lips, “Mickey I want to have sex with you”.

Mickey pulls away in surprise, “Yeah?”

“Yeah” Ian confirms, kissing him again before he continues, “What are you doing tomorrow?”


	26. Chapter 26

Mickey’s heart beats more happily inside his bare chest just from texting Ian about later today.

His amazing boyfriend is so fucking innocent, so goddamn pure, and all he wants to do is make this, his first time, perfect for him.

They’ve been together for almost two months already, and Mickey’s already dreamt about having sex with Ian more than once, always waking up with messy boxers and a stupid grin on his face while he lies tangled in his sheets, sometimes even sporting a red mark on his bottom lip from biting on it in his sleep.

He’d be embarrassed to still be having wet dreams if the dreams weren’t so fucking hot, because, because what was a guy’s body supposed to do, dating another dude like that but not actually going all the way in real life? And he knows realistically Ian’s not gonna be like a fuckin professional or anything his first time, but just based on the way Ian touches him… or the way he makes him feel by just _looking_ at him… Mickey honestly thinks it’s going to be amazing.

He’s glad Mandy’s out today too doing whatever the fuck she does at work, because it gives him the headspace to stay (mostly) calm and collected while he takes his time getting ready before he goes to pick Ian up so they can drive together to the apartment. Mickey takes a nice long and hot shower while he’s getting ready too, shaving a bit downstairs to make it a little neater for his boyfriend before he the tosses the razor aside, and wraps his tattooed hand around his semi- aroused dick instead.

There’s just no fucking way he’ll get through finally having sex with Ian without blowing his load too soon. So he’s gotta do this. Get off at least once before to give himself a bit more control. Hopefully that works, because he wants to enjoy the fuck out of this experience.

Home alone in the old Milkovich house and not so self conscious, he lets himself imagine Ian standing naked in the shower behind him as he slicks his hand with shampoo and goes to town pumping himself, bicep tensed. Ian’s smooth, hard abs…those fiery green eyes…freckled hands reaching for him…

Ian’s name escapes from between his pink lips low and uncontrollably when the aroused fire building in his gut finally spreads down to his groin, his release pouring down the drain with all the hot water still beating down around him onto the tile. Water dripping down his face and lips as he stands there for a moment to catch his breath, Mickey runs his hand through his hair, wondering what Ian’s doing right now. If he’s excited still, or nervous. Maybe he’s getting ready like this too, like their first time is some sort of date.

By the time Mickey gets dressed and combs his black hair down, after brushing his teeth for a little longer than he usually does, and yanking a plaid over shirt on over his white tee, he starts to realize he probably should have gone to his place first, without Ian, to clean up and shit, make the place half decent for his boyfriend’s first time.

The place has been standing still and stagnant for months, and he didn’t even empty the fridge before he took off…it’s probably damp, fucking gross and smelly in there by now. “Shit” Mickey mutters, glancing over at the digital kitchen clock in annoyance. He doesn’t really have enough time to go and clean up before he gets his boyfriend. Maybe Ian will agree to wait outside his apartment while he gives it a quick clean over...

He somewhat forgets about the status of his abandoned and distasteful bachelor pad when he pulls up in front of Ian’s house a while later, getting out of the Echo to say to everyone when he realizes they are all mostly sprawled out on the front yard, blowing bubbles for Liam, who’s trying to pop each one with his hands.

Making a conscious effort not to be rude, and do things a normal boyfriend _should_ , Mickey walks up to the Gallagher with a slightly raised hand and a smile, though his eyes stay on his boyfriend. “Hey guys”.

Ian immediately gets up to give him a kiss on the cheek that makes his pale skin tingle, and Fiona looks up at them with a smile, her brown eyes squinting through the bright sunlight, “What are you guys up to today?” she asks, sounding friendly.

Glancing behind her reflexively at Lip, there’s a smirk on the fucker’s face that Mickey’s sharp eyes don’t miss, and he reddens a bit when Ian hesitates before giving a pretty lame answer.

“Uh…just, you know, gonna watch a movie or something”.

“What movie?” Lip shoots back in amusement, and thank fuck Fiona is distracted by Liam flapping his hands over something, or she might notice the blank look on her blushing red-headed brother’s face.

It’s not that its anything fucked up or anything, Ian is eighteen and they’ve been together for a couple months already, but he still doesn’t want to inform the whole fucking family that he’s about to take Ian’s virginity. Just thinking that makes him want to cringe.

“It’s called Shut Up or Die” Mickey answers, shooting Lip a hard look, “Heard of it?”

 Lip’s smile drops just a bit at his heavily unimpressed tone, and reaching for another cigarette, he gives up bothering his brother over it pretty fast. “Uh, yeah. Maybe. Have fun Ian”.

“Thanks…” Ian says, laughing a little awkwardly as they wave a quick goodbye to everyone and head back for the safety of the Echo. “He’s a prick” Mickey mutters as he starts his car, but Ian just shrugs, giving another half-hearted laugh.  “Brothers. We give each other shit all the time”.

Mickey doesn’t have much to say to that. Mandy’s a chick and they always give each other shit… maybe its just a sibling thing.

“You want anything from Tim’s or Dunkins?” he asks as they drive towards his old apartment building. If this is like a date, he should do it right, right?

Ian hems and haws for a moment before he gives his answer, “Maybe an iced coffee or something”. After the redhead has been sipping rather quietly at the iced coffee he buys him for a while, and they hit a red light, Mickey reaches over to squeeze his boyfriend’s jean-covered thigh. “You ok man?” he asks gently.

“Yeah. I’m just…you know…” Ian blushes and looks out the car window and Mickey just nods, not sure exactly what to say, because he’s not sure that he does know.

His first time wasn’t really like this. Planned. And it didn’t mean much. Wasn’t that great either, but that’s besides the point.

For Ian it obviously means something, or he wouldn’t have waited. That means something, Mickey realizes. And it means he’s important too, or Ian wouldn’t have chosen him. Something about that makes him feel really good inside.

“Here it is” he says a little while later, pulling up in front of the shitty apartment building he used to live at. He thumbs at the old silver apartment key on his keychain as him and Ian get out of the car, and Ian actually looks sort of curious, looking up at the old building like he’s trying to get a sense of Mickey living there in the past.

Hand in hand, they go inside and wait inside the poorly lit lobby, watching the slow elevator numbers tick downwards on the car before the doors shudder open, both boys stepping into the empty elevator pretty quietly. With Ian’s hand still in his, warm and just a little sweaty, Mickey feels his heartbeat start to pick up speed again, especially when he glances over at the heavily scratched mirror and sees Ian looking over him too, a peaceful look in his familiar green eyes.

Time to bring up the awkward part.

“I was thinking, maybe I should go in first and clean up a bit? Like I honestly haven’t been back since…you know. It probably fucking reeks in there” Mickey says a little awkwardly when they step off onto his floor.

Ian just looks confused by his concern, “Is there like… pictures of you guys together still up or something?”

“Fuck no. Definitely not. But…maybe a shirt or something man, I don’t know. I don’t really remember” Mickey admits, honesty feeling gritty. His relationship with Ian was so…so good, that it made his past mediocre one feel dirty in comparison.  

Thankfully, Ian doesn’t look upset by the admission, “It’s okay Mick. I mean, you didn’t even know me then... and I’ll help clean up if that’s okay with you. I’d feel like a creep just sitting in the hallway”.

“Alright” Mickey answers, turning the key in the lock before he shoves the creaky door to 702 open. His blue eyes quickly wash over the apartment, feeling a fast flood of memories as he takes in the dingy mess. He’s kind of embarrassed by the way it looks, but Ian doesn’t seem to be judging him, just smiles in interest as he looks at some of the old torn-up posters and spray-painted graffiti on the otherwise gray walls.

“Yours?”

“Uh…some of it. The owner of the building owed me a ways back, so I pay next to nothing to keep this place each month. But you know, you get what you pay for. Fuck all in this case”.

“I still can’t wait to move out someday” Ian laughs softly, taking off his sweater and tossing it over one of the cheap chairs Mickey had left shoved up against his two- person dining table. Literally picked that piece of shit up on the street, like a lot of his furniture. But somehow this apartment looks a lot better with Ian in it.

Mickey smiles as he goes to crank open the windows that are locked past opening more than two inches, before opening the fridge gingerly to remove the few rotten items that are stinking up the place while Ian wipes dust off the countertops and tiny dining table, humming to himself happily and still looking around every so often.

Part of Mickey’s mind feels sort of stupid for being so damn reluctant to come back here. It was shit, but it was privacy that him and Ian could have used in the past. Before he met Ian though, he really thought he’d be fucked up and alone, for a long time, before he found an arrangement half as decent as the one he’d had.

Fuck it. He’d found something a hundred times better.

After dropping off the garbage (including an old t-shirt of Max’s) in the garbage shoot down the hallway, Mickey returns to his apartment and finds Ian sitting and looking over at the unmade bed that’s taking up a fair amount of the small place, his head tilted sideways a little.

Mickey hesitates, wondering what comes next.

He clears his throat awkwardly as he goes over to smooth out the rumpled sheets, making a little joke because he’s not sure how to lead into it, “Should of done laundry before you came over too I guess”.

“Do you have a laundry room in your building?” Ian asks, his head immediately straightening as he looks towards him.

“Uh…yeah?”

Mickey pauses, trying to show his confusion without being rude. Ian wants to keep cleaning…instead of having sex? He’s definitely confused. “It’s not a big deal or whatever” Ian quickly explains, noticing his concerned face, “I just think maybe we should clean the sheets or whatever before we... I mean, the last time you were here-“

“Shit, yeah, sorry. Of course”. Mickey shakes his head, feeling like a fucking idiot for not thinking of that, but Ian just smiles reassuringly as he gets up, giving him a slow warm kiss as he makes him pause his movements towards the bed, “I just want it to be perfect Mick. I don’t want…”

He presses his face closer against Mickey’s neck, mumbling now, because he’s obviously a little embarrassed, “I don’t want your sheets to smell like him”.

Mickey honestly doesn’t even remember what Max smelled like. He doesn’t remember ever caring…Not like he cares with Ian, breathing in deeply whenever they hug so he can remember that invigorating yet at the same time comforting scent when they are apart, but he nods and kisses Ian’s cheek again really quickly before he yanks the old sheets and blankets off his bed like they’ve offended him, rolling them into a ball before he grabs an old jug of laundry detergent from the linen cupboard.

They hang out in the laundry room together, talking, joking, and kissing whenever they are alone, Ian sometimes coming over to sit on Mickey’s lap for a minute here or there, leaning back to smile and kiss his black hair.

Finally, after a shit ton of quarters and an hour and a half, Mickey is spreading the clean sheets back over the queen sized bed in his apartment, while Ian disappears in the bathroom to “get ready”.

With a bit of a shiver of excitement, Mickey wonders what that means, digging in his nightstand for the old box of condoms he’d left behind too. He'd gotten himself ready earlier.

Strangely, he feels a bit nervous himself, almost like its _his_ first time again too. But maybe it’s because this is different than any other time he’s had sex before. It doesn’t feel rushed. There’s not a drop of alcohol in either of their systems. He doesn’t feel impatient, or agitated. He kind of just feels a lot of love and respect for Ian, followed by a hot, unfamiliar feeling of excitement and anticipation in his stomach.

Maybe this is what sex is supposed to be like…

Mickey finds the box of Lifestyle condoms in his nightstand drawer, but also some old white dollar-store candles that have been used a couple times. The fuse box in the old building had a habit of blowing, and so Mickey learned the hard way a while back to always keep candles and flashlights on hand for when the power went out.

He debates back and forth for a hot minute, muttering to himself a bit as he finally just says “fuck it” and arranges the candles out on the nightstand, taking his cigarette lighter out from his jeans pocket to get them going.

As soon as he’s done lighting them, the bathroom door opens across from him, and Mickey freezes, eyes drawn right towards Ian, who’s looking down at the flickering candles on the nightstand beside the bed, a soft smile on his face.

“You do that for me?” he asks, approaching Mickey slowly with that little smile still in place.

Mickey grimaces in embarrassment, “Is it too much? Fuck. Sorry, I-” “It’s perfect” Ian murmurs back, tilting his head and closing his sweet eyes as he reaches him and leans in for an open-mouthed kiss. It takes just seconds for Mickey to reciprocate, forgetting entirely about his flash of embarrassment over the candles as Ian’s body warmth envelopes him, his kisses more firm, more purposeful, than they usually are.

He tastes minty too, his tongue fresh and cool like spearmint, and with a small smile Mickey wonders if Ian snuck a mini bottle of mouthwash or something over in his sweater pocket just so he'd taste good. He always tastes good.

Ian back steps him towards the bed, but they pause before going down together, and Mickey feels Ian’s long fingers gently resting at the hem of his tee shirt before he begins to lift it upwards. He's taking his time, and when his fingertips finally touch Mickey’s taught and bare stomach, he feels another rush throughout his entire body, his mind buzzing as he reaches back for Ian’s shirt too.

This is it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter is their actual, full out first time. I promise, and I'm making the time to get it written/edited/added before I get back to exam work :D


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo 90 subs thanks everyone! <3

The boy’s shirts come off slowly, soft material hitting the parquet floor quietly as their warm bare chests then come together while their lips never part, their ragged breathing starting to quicken when the intimacy becomes deeper.

Each movement at the same time is slow and careful, not rushed or planned out though, and Mickey willingly lets Ian take the lead for each next step so he knows his boyfriend is comfortable with everything that’s happening.

He’s filled with a strange sense of emotion while at the same time an incredible and unrestrained heat flows through his veins, and Mickey’s almost completely overwhelmed by his intense feelings for Ian when their lightly shaking hands start to roam over each others bodies.

Almost tentatively, their free hands explore across each other’s firm chests, and then slide slowly down each other’s smoothly muscled arms before finally coming to rest at the back of each other’s heads, cradling one another close during their embrace.

Mickey’s not sure how long they stay like that exactly, with their eyes squeezed shut, kissing like they’ll stop fucking breathing if they pull apart before he eventually feels fingers that aren’t his fumbling at the button of his jeans.

Shifting back just a little bit, he happily lets Ian undo the button and pull down on his jeans just enough for them to drop towards the floor, and then Mickey shuffles them off the rest of the way, kicking them away from himself as he reaches down to stroke himself through his briefs for a moment, already completely hard. The heat coming off his dick is insane, his whole body feeling more sensitive to touch than it usually is.

“Take yours off” he finds himself whispering into Ian’s mouth, and like his innocent boyfriend was waiting for unneeded permission or something, Ian then quickly undoes the button of his own jeans with one hand before pulling them down and out of the way too, throwing them away from his body like they were offensive.

They finally fall onto the bed together slowly as a combined weight, the bed sheets still warm and soft from the dryer beneath their skin as only their underwear remains to keep them from being completely bared to each other.

Mickey opens his blue eyes again, and as hazy and lost as they as they feel, he looks up to see Ian leaning over him, his boyfriend’s own pupils heavy and dark, and his perfect lips parted before he leans down to kiss him again.

A few more kisses, and they start to get faster, and then harder in intensity, and Mickey feels his hips push upwards against Ian without thinking much, the material of his briefs rubbing up against his dick that’s straining like crazy beneath it. He’s never experienced foreplay like this in his entire life.

But then Ian’s lifting away, and propping himself up a bit on his elbows, Mickey sees him taking off his striped boxers, tugging at Mickey’s black briefs in the same moment to get him naked at the same time.

_Fuck…yes_

Mickey quickly helps his boyfriend to remove his own underwear and throw it to the floor, but before he launches forward to kiss Ian again with a new and heightened need for contact, Ian pauses, putting a hand out against his chest to gently stop him.

Heart thudding, Mickey quickly licks his parted lips, blue eyes darting across Ian’s green ones in concern. Fuck, he is _so_ far gone…he really fucking hopes Ian doesn’t say he’s not ready now.

Mild fears aside, he asks gently, wanting to make sure. “You okay man?”

Instead of saying he isn’t though, Ian just blushes, looking down at Mickey’s naked body before he looks up again, green eyes searching Mickey’s obviously heated blue ones a little shyly.

“Yeah it’s just, I don’t know…how do you want to do this? What feels best for you?”

Mickey pauses, and with happiness flooding his chest for whatever reason, he smiles, pressing his forehead against Ian’s warmly before he answers, “However you want it Ian. Here”.

He reaches over past the flicking candles to grab a condom and the bottle of lube from his nightstand for Ian, who tears it open with fumbling fingers, and Mickey watches with needy and heavy eyes as Ian slowly fingers it over the tip of his erection before lowering the condom down, giving himself a firm handed stroke or two and closing his eyes before he says quietly, almost to himself, “I’m ready”.

Following Ian’s lead as his boyfriend slowly starts to crawl over the length of his body again, Mickey lies back on his bed, his head nicely cushioned beneath a soft pillow as Ian hovers over him, practically trembling, he’s so intensely in the moment.

“S’okay...you’re okay” Mickey murmurs, reaching up to stroke Ian’s cheek as Ian nods, shifting above him. Mickey had already prepped himself earlier in the day with a toy, and he had to, because he hadn’t really had anything in his ass for the past couple months, but he lowers Ian’s hand down towards his hole anyways, so he’ll be completely ready too.

Ian looks at him for permission almost before Mickey nods again, and then he feels one warm and generously lubricated finger slide inside himself, and push in and out slowly before another finger tentatively joins it.

“Uhh” escapes from Mickey’s lips uncontrollably, his forehead creasing in pleasure while Ian stares down at him in a mixture of amazement and lust. “Is that okay? Does it feel good?” Ian asks, sounding hushed.

_It had been too long since he felt this._ “So good Ian. So fucking good” Mickey groans back, soon adding, “…I’m ready for you though”.

The fingers slip out gently, and then Ian comes back upwards again, kissing Mickey slowly, his tongue pressing in wet and warm over Mickey’s own before he eventually pulls back and away to guide himself up against Mickey’s ready hole.

Mickey bites his bottom lip as he looks upwards, almost shaking his head in disbelief as he sees how fucking taken Ian looks with him, how warm…how soft… how perfect.

After a gentle pressing of the head of his cock against Mickey’s hole for a moment or two, Ian starts to push inside, and Mickey’s entire body feels like it’s being filled with a strange, wonderful, aching sense of electricity. “Oh…oh my God” Ian gasps above him in the same moment, his head practically rolling back in pleasure before he looks down at him again, and Mickey’s looking at him in the exact same way, grunting and accepting Ian’s ample length the very best he can after his months of abstinence while it makes its way deeper inside him.

But God it doesn’t take long before his body wraps around what its been missing.

“Oh fuck Ian, fuck me” he groans, pushing downwards while Ian slowly arches his hips in and out of him, already breaking a sweat and gripping onto his arms for balance.

“It doesn’t hurt?” Ian asks anxiously, but he’s obviously so far gone, Mickey can hardly believe he’s even considering that, “No, Ian…fuck I want you so bad” he quickly reassures him, “I’ve wanted you since I met you”.

“Mickey…” Ian groans out as he keeps moving his body to make each stroke of Ian’s harder, pushing further, “Mickey… don’t… I’m gonna…fuck!” Ian quickly goes absolutely still, looking down at him in horror, and Mickey doesn’t understand at first until he feels how much warmer Ian feels inside of him all of a sudden.

“Oh” he says dumbly, still so turned on and desperate, he almost finds himself wanting to try and grind against Ian’s now softening cock to quickly get himself off. “Jesus Christ I’m so sorry” Ian almost gasps, “I just…I just need five minutes. Just wait and I’ll-“

“Hey” Mickey says, helping Ian to pull out slowly, “It’s fine. That’s just our warm up, okay? We got all the time in the world” he reassures his boyfriend, smiling and lifting his eyebrows until Ian finally smiles back, nodding even though his cheeks are still flushed red. “And I would have cum by now too if I didn’t jerk off earlier today” Mickey adds.

Which was fucking true. His whole body still feels like its on fucking fire, urging him towards the orgasm with Ian that he’s been waiting so fucking long for.

“I didn’t think of that” Ian admits, scratching his red head innocently as he takes off the filled condom, getting up from the bed to tie a knot in it and carefully put it on the floor away from their things, “Are you supposed to do that?”

Mickey lifts his arm to let Ian rest against his still heaving chest as he gets back into the bed with him, “I dunno honestly. But for your first time, its pretty normal to finish like that”.

“Mmm” Ian answers after a while, but then he lifts the sheet to peek down at Mickey’s still entirely stiff dick, apparently unwilling to go down in the mean time.

They both snort a little quiet laugh, but then Ian’s moving down beneath the sheets, and down some more until his mouth is covering Mickey’s hard on, and Mickey exhales sharply at the sensation, reaching down to stroke Ian’s red hair gratefully as his boyfriend pulls off to lick up and down Mickey’s thick length slowly, pausing every so often to give some extra attention to the tip while Mickey fights to stay still, his thighs twitching.

Less than five minutes later Ian is lifting his head up though, and pulling away the sheet from himself, “Can you get me another condom? I’m hard again already” he pants, showing the evidence to his boyfriend.

“Yeah, yeah of course”.

Mickey wastes no fucking time reaching over for another one, and he practically groans in relief as Ian much more easily slides the condom on this time, pressing himself up against his still wet hole almost right away. Ian looks much more determined this time, and less nervous too as he pushes his hips forwards, holding Mickey’s pale thighs apart while Mickey tries not to come apart just from the visual.

“Ian, fuck…harder…” he begs when Ian starts his slow rhythm again, almost teasingly, except Mickey knows that’s not what he’s actually doing. He just doesn’t know how far he can take things yet.

Without a word in response to his urging, Ian humps into him a little harder, and a little faster, almost experimentally until Mickey’s nodding and groaning more loudly again, and with that, Ian just fucking goes for it, giving Mickey a hard pounding he didn’t even know a fucking virgin was capable of.

“Holy fuck! Yes!” he gasps out, and Ian leans forwards, pressing their chests together as he continues to fuck him, and with his rock-hard dick sandwiched between their shifting bellies, Mickey knows he’s not gonna last much longer.

He kisses Ian hard before he grits his teeth, pulling away to groan into the pillow, “Ian you’re gonna make me cum so fucking hard”.

“Yeah?” Ian asks, panting hopefully. His green eyes are dark and shining, his forehead covered in a thin sheen of sweat and he’s...he’s so fuckin beautiful.

With a mixture of both a grunt and a moan, Mickey comes in between both of their stomachs, the feeling hot, wet and messy between them as Ian continues to push into him, breathing faster and harder as he approaches his second orgasm.

“Mic-key” he manages to get out, forehead creasing more and more.

“Come on Ian” Mickey says, his voice low and heavy as he looks up at Ian’s face, watching the candles flickering in the reflection of his boyfriend’s irises, “Cum in me”.

Like the encouraging words just sent him right over the fucking edge, Ian arches his back erratically a couple of times, sagging on top of Mickey weakly after his powerful orgasm slams through his entire body like a tidal wave.

That. That was Ian’s first real time.

Mickey strokes his boyfriend’s messy red hair gently until Ian slowly rolls off of him to lay beside him on the bed instead, spent and panting. Hell, even Mickey’s still trying to catch his breath, but their hands never actually move away from each other, keeping themselves still physically connected.

Eventually, Mickey turns on his side a little to face Ian more directly, “So…was it worth waiting for? Everything you hoped it would be?” he asks breathlessly, almost like it’s a joke. But deep down, well, he fucking feels that pressure. He really hopes it was everything that Ian wanted…

He didn’t even know sex was supposed to be something special until he started falling in love with Ian Gallagher.

Ian smiles softly in response, his green eyes closing for a brief second before he moves closer to snuggle up against him, and Mickey can feel his boyfriend’s delicate eyelashes brushing against his pale cheek as he settles in closer.

“It was everything Mickey…everything” he promises.

Mickey nods, holding Ian closer as his boyfriend starts to give in to the obvious urge he is feeling for a post-coital cuddle and snooze.

Ian is everything… everything and more.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope it was everything you guys hoped for too <3 I honestly don't know where to go with the fic from here, I'll try and give it some thought during the rest of the exam period :)


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Will possibly end this at 30 chaps, may need an extra chapter or so to round out though, we'll see :) 
> 
> *PS, I fixed the earlier chapters in which the text screenshots had disappeared by just typing in what I think they said. I'm sorry that happened, if there are ever any errors like that in my fics please tell me so I can fix them :) Thanks guys! <3

$400 a month had never afforded such an incredible view.

Laying on his side, Mickey continues to watch the handsome man sleeping next to him in his bed, soft flannel sheets pulled up the middle of his chest as he continues to peacefully dream. About what, Mickey wonders.

What does Ian dream about?

He rearranges his head on his own flattened pillow in an attempt to get more comfortable, resisting the impulsive urge to reach out and gently touch Ian’s face, run his tattooed fingers over his boyfriend’s pale cheek, his slightly parted rosebud lips.

Even Ian’s eyelids have faint freckles, Mickey notices, and by the sneaky morning sunlight streaming through the old frayed blinds he has covering his window, he can see how golden red Ian’s eyelashes truly are, resting delicately on his relaxed face.

He feels like he could watch Ian sleeping in his bed forever. Waking up next to Ian for the very first time had him feeling like he wanted to wake up this way every morning. But somehow, feeling truly peaceful and warm now, he drifts off again, only waking up when he feels someone watching _him_ this time.

Blinking as he comes to again, his lips drift into a small smile as he finds Ian awake and smiling across the bed at him.

“Good morning”.

Ian’s voice is slightly rough, clearly the first words he’s spoken today. The sound tugs a little on Mickey’s heartstrings, “Good morning” he answers back, both of them still observing each other happily from across the bed, “How’d you sleep?”

“Really good. Not sure how I ended up so far away from you though…” Ian teases gently, pulling himself closer towards Mickey to give him a kiss, “…That’s better”. He pushes himself up into a seated position when they lazily break apart, rubbing the back of his head and messing his red hair up even more adorably before he stretches a bit, “I’m gonna use your bathroom… and then do you maybe want to grab brunch before I go to work?”

Mickey laughs, still not getting up.

“Brunch?”

“We missed breakfast, so…it’s brunch. You know what, don’t argue Mick. We’re getting brunch” Ian decides, sticking his tongue out at him playfully before he reaches over to give him a shove. Mickey watches Ian disappear into his bathroom, closing the door gently behind himself, and keeps happily looking at the closed door for an extra moment before he finally gets up, sniffing at his jeans from yesterday before he pulls them on again.

Good enough.

He goes for a clean black t-shirt at least, leaving out an extra one for Ian. They hadn’t planned on him spending the night, but it just sort of happened. After they had sex twice, they still couldn’t bring themselves to separate, and ended up spending most of the night in each other’s arms in his bed.

Mickey’s honestly not sure what part was better, the sex, or sleeping next to Ian. Both left him feeling like he was floating on cloud nine, and both had him aching for more.

He passes Ian on the way to the bathroom when his boyfriend finally comes out, who points at the extra folded shirt on the bed, “That for me?”

“Yeah, it should fit. Thought you might want something clean to wear to work. My pants are probably a bit short for you though” he answers, but Ian shakes his head with an appreciative grin, “You’re the best. I’ll be ready to go when you come out”.

After a quick freshening up in the bathroom and a sped-up version of usual his morning rituals, Mickey joins Ian and they leave the little apartment together. As soon as they get into the Echo and Mickey starts to drive, they sound of their stomachs mutually grumbling becomes more audible.

“What do you want to eat?” Mickey asks, turning his slightly as Ian leans over to kiss him again. “Anything. I’m fuckin starving” Ian admits, rubbing his stomach.

“Alrighty then, A&W it is” Mickey answers, grinning as he abruptly turns the steering wheel to pull into the closest fast food place he sees.

They end up sitting inside the restaurant with a tray covered in hash browns, bacon and eggers, sausage and eggers, fuck, just about anything they see listed on the breakfast menu.

“Hungover?” the cashier jokes, not seeing the way Ian’s hand moves slightly to purposefully brush against Mickey’s free hand lovingly while he pays for the both of them.

They glance over at each other, share a happy look.

“Something like that”.

When they are almost finished jamming the greasy food down their throats, Ian looks up at Mickey, wiping his mouth off on a napkin even though his cheeks are still full of hash brown. “Are you busy tonight?” he asks.

Mickey shrugs, “Work from 8-2 again”. They were so hungry at the start they barely spoke as they ate, but now mostly satiated, he slows grins over at his innocent looking boyfriend, “Why? You uh, wanna come over again?”

Ian blushes, looking out the window before he looks down at his sandwich again, “Yeah. I mean, if you want me to. I don’t mind going home if you want some space or something”.

“Ian” Mickey says firmly, “Look at me”.

Ian looks up, green eyes tentative. “I don’t want space from you. You finish at seven thirty, right? I’ll pick you up, drop you off at my place if you want, and then you’ll see me again at two” Mickey promises, starting to gather up all the empty wrappers at the table as Ian nods.

He drives Ian to the Crush store, getting out of his car to walk inside with him like he always does. Normally it’s just to spend every last minute with him that he can, but today he also needs to grab some bulk powder again. This extra fast food, and the fact that Ian’s going to be seeing him naked more often, gives him the sudden urge to start hitting the gym even harder again.

He feels a flash of dislike as he sees Trevor the curly headed fuck working behind the counter, but Ian barely seems to notice his annoying co-worker, he’s just tagging after Mickey like a love-struck puppy as he goes to pick out the first brand Ian had ever recommended to him.

“Hey Mick” Ian whispers, blushing a little even as he tries to stifle an immature laugh, “How about tonight I show you that Proud Cock I was talking about before?”

Mickey rolls his blue eyes, but he can’t help but laugh too, remembering the first day that he had ever met Ian. Fuck it had been life changing. “I’ll hold you to that, Gallagher” he promises, already wishing he could fast forward until tonight.

“You got it Popeye”.

Ian brushes Trevor aside at the register so he can ring Mickey out himself, and Mickey notices that Ian applies his own discount to it, slicing the price in half. Raising his eyebrows in appreciation, he raises his debit card to pay, and as soon as he takes the jug of protein powder from Ian, his smitten boyfriend leans over the counter to kiss him, long and slow. Right in front of Trevor, who clears his throat awkwardly after a moment.

Blushing, Ian pulls back from the kiss, biting his bottom lip before he quickly says, “See you tonight”.

“Yeah you will” Mickey agrees. He practically saunters back to his car, feeling like he’s on top of the fucking world right now.

When he turns the key in the ignition, the radio that Ian had turned on earlier immediately comes back on, and Mickey sits there for a moment before he pulls out of the lot, nodding his head and almost, _almost,_ singing along as he taps his hands against the steering wheel.

_“_[](https://genius.com/Night-riots-follow-you-lyrics#note-8179138) _No shame, I believe I'm in love with you, I'm in love with you  
No shame, I believe I'm in love with you, I'm in love with you_ __  
  
I drive by your work almost every day  
That big old window shows me everything  
I saw you look at me through the glass  
Your eagle vision almost made me crash”.

Maybe he sings along. So fucking what.

He can barely wait to drive back and see Ian later that night even though they won’t have much time together. Getting there a little early but seeing the store lights are out, he leans against the hood of his car, smoking a cigarette and then another one in the dark while he waits.

As soon as Ian and Trevor come outside, Ian locks the door, and then he turns. In a few quick strides he is there in Mickey’s strong arms, kissing him hard, like he hadn’t seen him in days, not giving a fuck that his employee is uncomfortably heading towards his own car after witnessing the whole thing.

“Miss me?” Mickey asks, his voice low and gravelly as he bites his bottom lip.

God, he wants Ian so bad…and having sex seemed to have had the same fucking effect on his horny boyfriend. Like after waiting for so long to discover how amazing they were together, they could barely peel themselves off of each other.

“Yeah I did” Ian breathes out shamelessly, and even though they reluctantly come apart to drive back to the apartment, they kiss and grope at each other the entire way up in the elevator and all the way to Mickey’s door.

Mickey unlocks the door for Ian, but he reluctantly has to say his goodbye right there. “I gotta get to work now Ian. If you want to wait up though, I’ll be down for you when I get back” he promises, looking over the lean and perfect body in his arms.

“Can’t wait” Ian grins, giving him one last lingering kiss before he leaves.

Most nights, Mickey shows up for work and it’s a bit of a fuckin drag. He works in the middle of the night, so he comes home to an empty and cold ass apartment after hours of quiet mopping and cleaning the hospital. So, he usually never worries a whole lot about long shifts.

But tonight, tonight he can’t wait for the clock to move forward to the time he can go home, to Ian.

He thinks of that the whole way home after 2 a.m., unable to keep the smile of his pale and tired face as he finally parks his car outside the apartment building, and takes the shaky old elevator upstairs, humming most of the way contentedly to himself.

Just coming home to his boyfriend. That’s all.

In case Ian is sleeping, he turns the key in the lock quietly, because his apartment is only a bachelor after all. The bed is a few feet away from pretty much everything, including the door, and he doesn’t want to be a dick.

Pushing the door open gently, he blinks hard in surprise as he realizes what he’s walked into, hearing Ian say “Shit!” and slamming the laptop shut before he even really sees what was on it.

“Was that…were you watching porn?” he asks slowly, closing the door behind himself as he comes inside.  

Red in the face, with flannel sheets covering most of his lower body even though he’s still obviously wearing boxers at least, Ian looks embarrassed as hell as he stutters out, “I wasn’t trying to get off! I was…I wanted… _fuck_ ”.

“Ian, just spit it out. Jesus, I’m not gonna be mad” Mickey promises. To be honest, as he kicks his dirty work boots off and approaches the sagging bed and his fiery boyfriend, he’s trying not to laugh. The redhead is more goddamn adorable than most people have a fucking right to be.

“I wanted ideas” Ian finally admits slowly, waving his hand around, “You know…to make you feel good”.

Wow. Was _not_ expecting that one. “Ian...you do make me…fuck, you made me feel so good. You saw” Mickey sputters in disbelief.

“Well… I just wanted ideas. That’s all” Ian repeats meekly.

There’s a brief moment of almost absolute silence where Ian is still obviously embarrassed and looking almost annoyed before Mickey bites his bottom lip apprehensively, “So, uh… did you get any?”

“What?” Ian asks, eyebrows coming together in confusion.

Mickey clears his throat, feeling warm again. “Did you get any ideas? Stuff you wanna do with me? To me…?”

“Oh…yeah. I did” Ian admits, glancing over at him as Mickey takes off his uniform, folding it over a chair before he crawls onto the bed, taking the laptop and putting it onto the floor, out of their way, so he can take Ian’s face in his hands and give him a kiss.

“Tell me” Mickey murmurs, feeling his skin flush when Ian reaches down to rub his palm over his boxers. It really doesn’t take much for him to get hard, and with a guy like Ian in his bed...? Fuck.

“I want to do this thing where your legs are up, over my shoulders. And I’ll be really deep inside you” Ian tells him, shivering a little bit in anticipation while the last part comes out in almost a whisper.

Mickey massages the sides of Ian’s strong arms before he moves down to kiss Ian’s warm neck, feeling his pulse quicken beneath his lips.

“Yeah? I like the fuckin sound of that. Anything else?”

“After that I want you to…I want you to ride me” Ian admits, starting to tremble more and more in excitement as Mickey moves his mouth and gently pressing tongue down against his neck, his shoulders, and finally between his collar bone in soft kisses.

“Well what are you waiting for Gallagher?” he challenges, leaning back to raise a dark eyebrow at him.

Ian pauses for just a second, like he’s thinking, before he puts his arms around Mickey and rolls hard to switch their places in the bed. Their eyes meet, heated blue regarding excited green, and then Ian is yanking his boxers down before removing Mickey’s too in record time, who’s panting just fucking watching him.

Ian’s like a goddamn animal in heat, a bull finally let out of the pen, and he fucking loves it.

Mickey doesn’t do a thing, just lets Ian reach over for the lube and a condom, eyeing his boyfriend’s impressive and amazingly stiff erection bob between his hairy legs at his movements, and then Ian is grabbing at Mickey’s legs and pulling him towards him down the bed before he places his ankles up by his shoulders.

“Ian” Mickey reminds him reluctantly, “Fingers first man”.

Normally, when he’s having sex regularly, he can get around that shit. But one night wasn’t enough to really get him physically used to taking dick like a champ again. Especially not a fucking decent one like Ian’s.

Ian nods, carefully putting more lube on his fingers before he eases them into Mickey’s ass. Before long though, Mickey is arching his back, uncomfortable because he wants more, and between muttered whispers, he makes that clear.

Ian leans down to kiss him lovingly before he rearranges Mickey’s ankles up by his broad shoulders and aims his hips to get his dick in place. The initial stretch burns, just the tip of Ian’s hard dick making Mickey’s teeth clench and his muscles contract as it enters him, but the more Ian slides in the better it feels, and he gasps when Ian is fully inside him, kneeling like a pornstar in front of him on the bed while his own legs are up in the air, resting on his boyfriend’s shoulders.

The view is absolutely fucking perfect, Ian working him good and hard and impossibly deep while Mickey can reach forward and stroke his own stiff dick and he lets out little pleasured groans as he watches the whole thing through heated eyes, Ian similarly transfixed by the sight he’s looking down on.

Something tells Mickey neither of them are going to be sleeping tonight.


	29. Chapter 29

_*Three Weeks Later*_

Returning from yet another grueling and intense workout at T-Nation and tossing his red gym bag to the bare floor of his apartment with a certain flourish, Mickey’s arm and leg muscles feel the familiar burn that signifies both tear and growth, and that’s a good thing.

He hums to himself as he pushes aside the new navy-blue curtains covering his bachelor apartment’s window that Ian had helped him to pick out and put up, long ones that actually blocked out the morning light whenever he remembered to draw them the night before.

Which was almost never, according to his teasing boyfriend.

It’s still bright and sunny out, so he pushes open the stiff window the inch or so it allows to get some fresh air in the place before he goes into the small kitchen area of his apartment to mix together his second protein shake of the day.

While he drinks down the gritty and chocolatey mixture, he gazes over at the man-made mess on his bed, his dark green bed-sheets still lumped into the position him and Ian had left them in after he rode his boyfriend _hard_ into the mattress that morning.

Mickey for once was fuckin glad most of the other tenants in the run-down apartment building were either lazy crackheads or vacant users that didn’t bother to complain about noise, because he fucking knows him and Ian have been getting louder and louder over the weeks, slamming the bed down against the floor, grunting and groaning in pleasure. It just keeps getting better.

His boyfriend and him were like physical addicts for each other, never managing a single day where they didn’t feel the absolute need to have sex in one way or another, and he sure as hell wasn’t complaining. Nothing fucking compared to the feeling of Ian being inside him, and above or beneath him, his boyfriend’s hands roaming warmly over his tingling skin as they touched and moved together.

Nothing compared to kissing him either, to seeing his green eyes close in bliss when they connected like that. Nothing compared to saying goodnight to him in person, and then waking up next to him in the morning, tangled up in his bedsheets and his arms like he just belonged there.

The more Mickey thought about it…the more he was getting closer to finally-

He lifts his jarring iPhone out of his grey sweats pocket to swipe off his loud alarm reminder, giving him twenty minutes to have a quick shower and then jump in the car to go pick up Ian from his shift at Crush. They had agreed to meet Mandy and Lip for dinner tonight, who had apparently been going steady for a little while now.

Mickey’s not sure who was more surprised to hear that. Him or Ian, considering they both had somewhat doubtful views of their sibling’s abilities to be monogamous.

Regardless, Mandy sounded really happy about being with Lip, and he wanted to see it for himself. He rarely spent time at the Milkovich house anymore, something his sister didn’t complain about, but he still felt a brotherly sense of responsibility to her, to make sure she was doing alright.

After a nice hot shower with shitty water pressure, Mickey pops some mint gum in his mouth and drives to Crush, reaching out for his radio dial without thinking on the way. When Ian wasn’t there, it was just too silent in his car. Too empty.

The parking lot to the strip mall is pretty full today, so he can’t park very close to the store. But he notices Crush’s front door is propped open today with a spare brick to let the fresh air inside as he walks towards it, deciding to just go in and tell Ian he’s here instead of texting him.

His boyfriend’s not closing the store tonight, so he doesn’t have to lock up.

At the sound of a familiar voice but an unusual tone, Mickey pauses outside of the propped open glass door. He is standing at the side of the building, so he can’t see _inside_ the store, but he can hear the conversation inside, and at first it makes his heart thump harder.

“Trevor…I just don’t understand why you would do that”.

Ian’s voice. He sounds hurt. Why does he sound hurt, Mickey worries. His hands automatically clench into fists.

Trevor sounds cold and almost angry as he answers, “I don’t think you deserve the promotion. I wrote out why on the forms John asked for while he was considering you, that’s all I have to say about it”.

“I’m asking _you_ why though. What can I do better? What can I improve on?”

Ian sounds almost desperate for some positive feedback, and Mickey bites his bottom lip in agitation. It pains his own heart to hear Ian sounding so hurt and confused, but he knows if he walks in now, there’s no chance in hell Ian will get the answer he might need to get the promotion he’s wanted for so long.

All Ian had talked about for the past few days was how he was finally up for one, now that his boss was planning to directly manage a different location instead of this one, and this is what it had come down to? Employee feedback?

Trevor snorts at the questions, “I don’t know Ian. Maybe you could start by not wasting so much time with your boyfriend around the store, or by giving him our discounts”.

Mickey feels a hot flush of anger wash over him right as Ian raises his voice in response, “Are you _fucking_ kidding me? You made sure I didn’t get the promotion because what, you’re mad I didn’t choose you? I told you as soon as you fucking started here that I was taken. You’ve never said shit about Karen bringing her boyfriends around, or giving them discounts”.

“Whatever. It’s not my fault you can’t do any better” Trevor’s voice gets a little more of a nasty tone to it as he finishes, “Than assistant manager…or him”.

There’s a thump, a growl, and a yelp of pain, and then Ian comes storming out of the store, fucking raging, barely noticing it’s Mickey who reaches out to grab his arm.

Ian’s green eyes are wide, his freckled face red, as he blurts out first in confusion at seeing him, and then in desperation for comfort, “M-what are you…? You’ll never fucking believe-“

“I heard” Mickey growls, dragging Ian towards his parked car. He’s practically seeing fucking red as soon as he notices the angry tears in Ian’s eyes, and he gets Ian into the safety and privacy of his car to let his heartbroken boyfriend cry it out to him in frustration.

“I’ve worked so fucking hard for this Mick. _So fucking hard._ For over a year and a half I’ve put in extra time without getting paid overtime, changed our store policies for the better, and raised our sales _three_ times over. John fucking knows that too! But that fucking asshole in there wrote me such a shitty review he said he couldn’t promote me, because it would raise HR suspicion!”

Mickey nods his head while Ian rants to him, trying to keep his own cool so Ian can vent, but it’s hard, especially when Ian’s sad eyes well up again, “And he said…he said something about you, and I just lost it. I fucking clocked him, and now I’m going to get fucking fired Mick”.

“Ian” Mickey tries to interrupt.

“I _love_ my job Mick. I love it. I don’t want to get fired!”

Mickey finally raises his voice to get his worked-up boyfriend’s attention, “Ian! Just sit here okay? Everything is gonna be fine, I promise you. Just wait here, okay?”

Ian sniffs, looking around the car in confusion until he pieces it together and his face immediately goes dark, leaning across the seat to grab at Mickey’s arm as he starts to get out of the car, “No! He’ll call the police Mick! I’m fucking lucky he didn’t already!”

“I’m not gonna hit him” Mickey answers, dead calmly. He sounds almost scary to himself. But no one, fucking no one, is going to hurt his Ian like this and get away with it. He doesn’t need to land himself in jail to fix things either. Trevor is obviously a little whiny bitch, and words will probably fuck him up just as much as a punch would.

“Promise you won’t get yourself in trouble?” Ian asks worriedly, and after Mickey nods, he slowly lets go, still red in and messy in the face from tears while Mickey gently closes the door behind himself and crosses the lot, looking both ways before he jogs towards the store.

He moves the prop brick away from the sidewalk so the door will close, and the bell chimes right as he flips the _open_ sign around to say _closed_ to any possible customers that might want to come in.

Trevor comes out of the backroom at the sound of the bell chime. With his left eye already swelling a bit, his unimpressed face drops as he sees who it is, and the now closed door.

“Fuck off man. I mean it. I’ll fucking call the cops” he warns.

“Shut the fuck up, and sit the fuck down. I just want to talk to you” Mickey says firmly, crossing his arms as if to prove he’s not going to throw a punch, but he’s not going anywhere either.

Trevor frowns at the comment before he reluctantly and slowly comes around the corner. But he doesn’t sit in the nearby chair, and he stands with his arms similarly crossed.

“First things first, _Trevor_ , I don’t give a flying fuck what you think about me. And I don’t blame you for wanting Ian, because you’d be fucking stupid not to. But guess what? He’s with _me._ And I don’t take too fucking kindly who people who fuck with the people I love”.

Trevor hesitates slightly at the icy cold look in Mickey’s blue eyes, but he doesn’t back down right away either, “I warned you, if you fucking touch me I’ll-“ he starts off.

Mickey interrupts impatiently, “Not gonna fucking touch you. Don’t want to. But I’ll tell you what is going to fucking happen, you hear me?”

He flexes his pale fingers, knowing the motion draws Trevor’s attention to the tattoos on them. “You are going to take back everything you said to John or whatever the fuck his name is. You’re gonna tell him Ian is great, to everyone who fucking walks through that door, and that he deserves that fucking promotion. And you fucking know he does, so don’t try to argue that you piece of shit. And once you do that, you’re going to tell John that you found a new job, and that you aren’t giving two weeks, you’re leaving now. And then you’re never gonna set fucking foot in this store again, you hear me?”

Mickey’s not a fucking idiot, and neither is Trevor. There is fear reflected in the other man’s brown eyes, and there fucking should be. After a long moment, he reluctantly and awkwardly nods, his voice quiet. “I’ll call John. And then I’ll quit”.

“Do it now. So I can hear you” Mickey demands, watching with hawk like eyes as Trevor reaches for the store phone with a shaking hand. He bites his lip while it rings and then clears his throat after John’s voice comes clear through the speakerphone.

“Hello?”

“Hey John. It’s…it’s Trevor. I have to talk to you about…about Ian’s review”.

The other man sighs, “Oh, yeah. I was disappointed to hear that. I can’t think of anyone else for the job to be honest with you, but if his performance is that bad according to another employee-“

“That’s why I’m calling” Trevor blurts out, seeing anger flash across Mickey’s face again, “It’s not. Ian is…great. He’s a great employee. I was just playing a joke with that review because, well I’m leaving, I found a new job”.

“Are you…are you kidding me?”

“No sir”.

The annoyance in John’s voice is now evident, “Jesus Christ. If you weren’t quitting, I’d fire you myself Trevor. If I had submitted that complaint to HR already, I wouldn’t have been able to retract it, and poor Ian would have been screwed”.

“I’m very sorry sir. And, and tomorrow is my last day”.

That’s all Mickey needs to hear, and he tips his head meaningfully at Trevor before he leaves the store, breathing out a small sigh of relief once he’s outside that his idea actually worked. He throws himself back into his Echo, finding Ian staring at the dashboard still, quiet and red-eyed.

He looks over at Mickey, who’s face immediately softens as he pulls him forward for a gentle kiss, pressing his forehead to Ian’s reassuringly. But before he has a chance to say anything, Ian’s phone starts to ring.

“It’s- it’s my manager. I have to take this” Ian sniffs, pulling away from him to answer the phone. He clears his throat, his voice still sounding sad but a lot more steady as he speaks, Mickey watching his boyfriend’s pale face closely.

“Hey John”.

The sadness reflected in Ian’s green eyes turns to confusion before shock, and then quickly joy, all while Mickey watches with a heart that feels like it could fucking burst. He doesn’t think he has ever loved anything, anyone, more than he loves Ian Gallagher.

And he can’t hear what John is saying on the other end on the phone, but he hears Ian’s happy laughter, his eager agreement, and his proud acceptance of the promotion he is finally offered.

-

“Wow. So you got the job then. Does it come with a raise?” Lip asks, bringing another forkful of mushroom risotto to his mouth while he looks over at his younger brother, impressed.

“Yeah! An extra four dollars an hour!” Ian exclaims excitedly, looking over at Mickey again with grateful eyes, who squeezes his hand beneath the table.

“That’s awesome. Congrats Ian. I know you’ve wanted this for a long time” Lip says, raising his wine glass to Ian, who raises his own back. That prompts Mickey and Mandy to grab their glasses as well, filled with cheap red wine at the only moderately priced nice restaurant they could find nearby.

Still, it was nicer than any place Mickey had taken Ian before, or vice versa, and it felt kind of nice, eating in a place that called them “sirs” and “miss”. Not something Mickey would probably ever fucking get used to, but he did notice Mandy’s girlish smile when her seat was pulled out for her, and he gets a feeling she likes this, being treated like a lady and not just some hood girl.

A clink and another sip of wine later, and Mandy’s motion of wrapping her arm around Lip’s bicep makes Mickey’s eyes flicker towards his younger sister, noticing the way her blue eyes are shining in the warm glow of the restaurant lights.

But there’s something else there too.

Happiness, plain and simple, as Lip leans over slightly to kiss her forehead before offering her a forkful of his food to taste.  

Damned if he’d admit it openly, but…the Gallaghers might be the best thing that had ever happened to the Milkoviches, Mickey thinks, a small smile on his lips as Ian’s hand on his continues to share its warmth, while they eat their dinners, drink their wine, and celebrate around the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a little drama before we end off on a sweet note next chapter :) Although it will be chapter 30/30 and I'll be taking a break from writing after this fic, I like this universe and I could see one-shots or a continuation happening down the road :) (possibly even a Lip/Mandy perspective)


	30. Chapter 30

_Later that night_

Mickey looks across the bed at Ian’s freckled hand clasped around his own tightly, squeezing hard as he gasps small breaths above him, music to his ears. He’s never felt safer, or more protective, than he has since he’s been with Ian, and he’s in love with every movement, every sound his boyfriend makes.

After they had finished their double dinner date with Lip and Mandy, Mickey had dropped those two off at the Milkovich home, who clearly didn’t limit themselves with the wine as much as him and Ian did. Him because he was driving, and Ian, well, it was sort of obvious what his reasoning was when he started to undress his boyfriend vigorously as soon as they stepped into Mickey’s apartment and shut the door behind themselves.

Mickey brings his blue eyes back up to Ian’s face now, to his soft pink lips parted above him, green and amber eyes hazy before they squeeze shut and he moans out, “God, Mickey…”

Having already finished a few moments before, Mickey helps rock his hips through Ian’s orgasm, guiding every last pulse of pleasure through his boyfriend’s long and lean body until he finally lets out a happy and tired sigh, and then slowly pulls out.

Mickey briefly closes his eyes while Ian discards his used condom.

When his boyfriend is back at his warm side, he opens them again, reaching over to stroke Ian’s red hair gently in the soft glow of the low-watt lamp beside his bed.

“You ever gonna tell me what you did, or said, to make Trevor change his mind about my promotion?” Ian asks curiously, pausing to kiss Mickey’s wrist.

Mickey thinks about it for a moment. “I reminded him why you deserved it”.

“Why’s that?” Ian asks, looking over at him almost shyly. But, as usual, Mickey can read his boyfriend easily. He wants some sort of…not praise exactly. But some sort of recognition.

“You care about that place Ian. I’ve seen you with your customers. You’re hardworking, probably the hardest working person I know. And yeah you make great sales, but you also make sure customers leave with what they need, not just what puts cash in the register. You don’t make them feel like shit about themselves if they’re out of shape, or older. You’re just…you’re a good person Ian. You make every person that comes in feel important”.

“You said all that about me?” Ian asks almost teasingly, but its light, because he knows Mickey wouldn’t have given a speech like that to just anyone. He thinks it, he feels it, and that’s what matters.

Mickey bites his bottom lip as Ian gazes over at him, appreciating the genuineness of his answer, the two of them slowly starting to smile as they watch each other’s facial expressions.

And then Mickey lifts his dark eyebrows, saying it as plain as simple as he’s come to know it.

“I love you Ian. I am so in love with you”.

Ian blinks for a moment before his smile splits into an even bigger grin, his youthful green eyes shining.

“I love you too Mickey”.

-

The next morning, Mickey awakens to Ian’s arm lying heavy over his bare chest as they lay side by side in his bed, sheets covering at least half of their bodies.

His own arm resting on his pillow behind his head, Mickey blinks up at the ceiling before his gaze falls to the second night table that has joined his apartment’s small collection of furnishings.

It had been giving Ian a place to put some of his things, like the bottle of pills he sometimes needs for migraines, or the book he likes to read when he has a quiet minute or two, and the lined notepad he likes to write his ideas down on for work.

Mickey looks back up at the ceiling.

He had been falling in love with Ian before he told him he was, and he had loved him before last night, both of them knew that. There just wasn’t any pressure with them to say or do things until they were ready. There never really had been. Each step for them happened whenever it was supposed to, with neither of them ever looking back on it.

There was something really reassuring about that, and maybe that's why the next step doesn't feel rushed for him either. 

He feels Ian shift slightly beside him in his worn-down bed, murmuring to himself unintelligibly, and he instinctively uses his free arm that was wrapped around Ian’s back to rub its smooth surface comfortingly.

Ian yawns as he wakes up for real, burying his face into Mickey’s side for a moment before he breathes out hard and resurfaces with a tired smile, “Good morning”.

“I want you to move in with me” Mickey says, like that was a perfectly normal response to _“good morning”._ Ian quickly pulls away from his side to look at his face. To search for a sign if Mickey’s joking maybe.

But he’s not.

He just continues to look at Ian, stroking his back gently with his thumb while he waits calmly for a response. His boyfriend seems to be in mild disbelief, “Really? You’d be okay with me moving in here?” he asks.

Mickey laughs softly, gesturing around the small space, “Ian…you pretty much already live here. You helped me fix up the apartment. You’ve had a new toothbrush here as long as I fucking have. You have your own nightstand now, and I’m pretty sure half of your things are already here. And I want you here, with me, all the time… unless you don’t want to, of course”.

He briefly considers that possibility, but it sounds stupid even to his own ears.

Ian really does laugh now, pushing upwards in the bed energetically to look down at him joyously, “Are you kidding me? I’ve been wanting to move out forever! And now…living with you? God Mick!”

Mickey laughs too, smiling into the kiss Ian leans down to enthusiastically offer him, repeating the words to his boyfriend he already knew he’d be saying a lot.

 “I love you Ian”.

-

“You sure you gonna be alright here on your own again?” Mickey asks his younger sister as he packs up the last of the things from his old house that he wants at the apartment.

Not only was Ian moving in with him, with all his own boxes already in the Echo, Mickey was officially moving out of his old house today.

Mandy rolls her blue eyes at him but smiles softly, “Yeah. And besides…”

She looks behind herself at Ian’s older brother Lip, who’s carrying two cups of steaming coffee out onto the porch, one clearly for her. “I’m not really on my own anymore”.

Mickey nods, pulling her into a gentle hug. “You ever need anything, just call. I’ll be there” he answers beside her ear. “Does that count if I need someone to cook dinner?” she asks cheekily. He lifts his dark eyebrows harshly as he pulls out of the hug, “Fuck no”.

“Shit”.

They both laugh at each other, and then Mickey starts to walk away, with a little wave of goodbye towards her and Lip.

But then he pauses and looks towards the car, at Ian sitting and waiting for him inside. He’s bobbing his red head enthusiastically to some music they can’t hear because the windows are rolled up. Mickey smiles back at his sister, tipping his head slightly, “Thanks Mandy”.  She doesn’t ask for what, she just smiles as he walks away.

She already knows.

Lip and Mandy wave as Ian and Mickey drive away from the street he grew up on, like they are going some place far away. And they aren’t. The apartment isn’t very far at all.

But this is the end of an old life for the two of them, and the beginning of a new, better one together, so maybe the old one deserves a goodbye.

-

_Back at the apartment_

Mickey and Ian unload the Echo of the rest of their belongings, and then once they get all the boxes into the lobby in front of the elevators, Ian holds out a hand towards him, pressing the up button with his other.

 “Toss me the keys. I really got to get my own now huh I guess?”

He looks so happy at the simple thought of owning a key to his own place, to _their_ own place, and Mickey smiles and nods as he easily tosses his set over, content with his position of guarding their remaining possessions while Ian takes up the first few boxes in the tiny elevator car.

The doors open while Mickey is looking down at his phone, shooting a text off to his manager at the hospital about switching cleaning shifts so he can be home with Ian on their first official night living together.

He’s thinking of ordering pizza, maybe renting a movie, and spending the evening curled up in bed together afterwards to celebrate.

He hears Ian politely say excuse me to someone getting off the elevator, and the doors close again with clatter before he looks up.

Mickey feels his heart drop for a brief second when he sees who’s standing in front of him.

“Hey man…its been a while” Max says, scratching the side of his neck with his free hand as he gives Mickey an awkward smile, blue eyes glancing over him. He’s holding a cardboard box in one hand, and sporting a green duffel bag slung casually over one shoulder too.

Mickey looks down at the ground in confusion for a brief moment. He honestly fucking thought when he saw Max again…he’d feel…sad maybe? Angry? Something other than the peaceful, happy feeling he does now.

He looks back up, “Guess so” he finally answers casually. Max gestures at the boxes on the floor Mickey is standing guard beside with his free hand, “You movin out today too? I lost my lease”.

Holy fuck.

Mickey glances around the lobby for a second quickly, like maybe he’ll actually see what fate, or maybe even karma looks like. But there’s nothing there at all.

Just him, Max, and a box of Ian’s stuff resting on top of his own.

“No I’m…my boyfriend is moving in with me today” he slowly answers, his voice sounding strange to his own ears. He’s proud, and it’s obvious. Max looks surprised. Very fucking surprised, but then a little sad as he starts up again, right after a car horn honks from outside, “That’s great. You know Mickey, before I go, I really do owe you an apology. I’m sorry about the shit I did, you didn’t deserve that“.

Mickey distractedly glances behind Max at the flashing elevator numbers, watching it slowly come back down the lobby, and then he laughs.

“No, Max. If anything, I should fucking thank you”.

Max readjusts his bag on his shoulder as he starts to leave the lobby, leave the building, for good this time. To where, Mickey doesn’t fucking know or care. “Thank me?” Max asks in confusion.

But Mickey doesn’t answer, even as he hears Max mutter “ _whatever_ ” after the responding silence and then walk out the front door, because the old elevator doors open and fate, karma, steps out of them, all red hair and a smile, reaching out to touch his hand.

“I put on coffee Mick” Ian says, leaning over to kiss his cheek afterwards. His lips are smooth and warm against his pale skin. Mickey lets out a contented sigh. He can’t wait to get upstairs.

They both pick up the last of their things, and get into the elevator together. But before the doors close, Mickey sees there is no sign of Max anymore in the lobby, and he turns towards his boyfriend, his new roommate, for another loving kiss.

“That sounds perfect”.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Was always more than a crush <3 Happy holidays guys


End file.
